So We're A Couple
by Salderon
Summary: Confessions are never easy and are always awkward, doubly so when someone else blabs it in your stead. When the innocent and genuine admiration for Team RWBY's golden-haired brawler is aired out by proxy, shenanigans ensue as Tyrus "Ty" Boreale undertakes the first romance of his life during his tumultuous first year at Beacon Academy. Rated for violence and language.
1. Chapter 1: So Ruby Blabs

**Chapter One So Ruby Blabs**

 _Another day, another story from the Adventures of Peter A. Port._ Ty sighed, folding his arms on the desk before setting his cheek in the crook of his elbow. He spared a glance at his watch and his brows furrowed. _And it's gonna be a **long** one._

His gray eyes went on patrol around the room for something that would hold his interests over the drawn-out ramblings of Professor Port. Ty respected the portly man, the wizened huntsman's memoirs had sent countless young children to their dreams over the years; Ty included. But the difference between the reading of Port's escapades in a book and hearing them straight from the horse's mouth was a thing of presentation and coherence. Port's recounts on paper were tightly edited by a surprising number of ghostwriters to make the stories more interesting and—frankly—more exciting. The professor was an incredible teacher and practitioner of his craft, but he was more of a "here's a thing!" sort of storyteller, he went in deep with saying exactly how he acquired his contract or how it was he tracked his prey to its decrepit dwellings. To hear him talk it was mostly the initial hunt that spurred him and the actual action was an afterthought.

He was less like Robert E. Howard and more like William Golding in that regard.

Not for the first time that day Ty reevaluated his class scheduling. Why was he even taking this class? The rest of his team tested out of Port's Grimm Studies after the first week. Yet here Ty was, sitting alone in a class that effectively served as a refresher course while his teammates were off doing whatever for a free period.

He was considering asking to be excused when out of the corner of his eye Ty caught a flash of honey-colored locks in the light from the windows in the row in front of him. He grinned wickedly.

 _Bingo._

"Yang!" Ty whispered, frowning when she didn't respond.

With a scowl, Ty dug through the assorted documents splayed out on his section of the lecture desk in search of something that would catch Yang's attention. After a few moments, a few longer than he probably needed, Ty settled on a crumpled piece of scrap paper from one of his notebooks. Ty did his best to smooth out the crumpled bit of scratch pad, scribbled out a greeting to the blonde brawler, and waited until Port was facing away from his end of the classroom before he aimed and tossed the folded note. Arching it so that it bounced off of Yang's crown and landed just in front of her.

He just managed to catch the surprised, "What the—?" before Yang turned around with a perturbed smirk. Ty winked and popped his brows twice before motioning to unfold the paper before he settled sat back in his chair.

While Yang was scribbling something down Ty absently pulled on his collar. Christ, it was hot. When was it that the students were allowed to switch over to the Summer uniforms? If the heat kept rising like it was then there was a very good chance that Ty would swap his suits out and find that there were permanent sweat stains that— WHACK!

Ty gave a girlish yelp when the refolded note struck him in the face. His knees bumped up against the underside of his desk and his hand snapped up to cover where the offending object had struck and glared at Yang as she mouthed, "Sorry!" with an embarrassed and apologetic smile.

"Master Boreale?" Professor Port called out. The venerable man's tone made Ty wince. "Is there something the matter?"

Ty snapped his attention to the professor and quickly shook his head. "Uh, no, Professor! I was—uh—startled by a fly landing on my face!"

The aging instructor hummed and raised an eyebrow but after a moment he returned to his tale with a boisterous, "As I was saying!"

Ty sighed relief and unfolded the paper, quickly scanning what the blonde brawler wrote.

 _Hey Goldilocks. You busy?_

 _Ty! What's up? :)_

Ty tapped his pen on the desk and started his reply.

 _The usual: trying to stay conscious through Port's latest yarn. What's this one supposed to be about again?_

Ty chuckled to himself and tucked the paper into Yang's hair, sitting back with a satisfied smile as he watched her fumble through her thick hair for the piece of paper with a groan and scowl. The petty but satisfying revenge prank earned Ty a curious look from Ruby and a raised eyebrow from Blake. Ty touched his finger to the side of his nose and winked at the two girls. Blake rolled her eyes and went back to taking down notes in her textbook while Ruby cocked her head to the side. Ty watched for Yang's reaction when she had successfully freed the note from her mane. It was all of two seconds that her purple eyes glanced over what he wrote before setting the note on the desk to write.

 _Ferravores in Guyles I think. I lost track a while ago._

Yang folded the note and flipped it behind her when Port about faced and started for the other side of the lecture room. Ty replied immediately.

 _I hear ya :) Great arm, by the way. Does Roger Clemens know you nabbed it from him?_

Secreted by Yang and slipped back to Ty.

 _No, I don't think he even noticed._

Ty snorted quietly. _How's Weiss feeling? Any better?_

Back to Yang.

 _She's got a bit of her strength back. Still gets dizzy when she moves too fast. Doc Brunswick says it'll be a few more days before the swelling goes down._

 _Yuck. Sinus infections are nothing to Schneeze at._

Ty smiled broadly when he caught Yang's cut-off laugh. _Oh-ho! Well played!_

 _I try._

 _Ready to suck knuckles next match?_

Ty snorted and wrote quickly. _You keep assuming you'll win. It'll make victory all the sweeter._

 _Try not to get **Ty** ed down by your ego, slick._

The rest of class went on like that. Ty and Yang covertly and creatively passing the note to and fro while Port moved from one story and part of his lecture to the next. They earned more than a few amused glances from Ruby and an equal number of guffaws from Blake. Class ended and everyone packed up their books and papers so they could go about their day, and Ty made out ahead of most everyone. A bonus for having less junk sprawled on his desk and therefore less to pack away. He tucked the crumbled correspondence into his back pocket as he exited the room, a satisfied smile on his flushed face.

Aside from Ruby, Ty had never entrusted anyone with the knowledge of his crush and adoration for Beacon's resident golden haired pugilist.

Admittedly Ty hadn't actively sought Ruby out to confide in. As a matter of fact, she had more or less figured it out herself. For a girl so young Ruby had a remarkable amount of insight. It wasn't too much of a shock to him though, the scarlet sniper was dense, but Ruby knew a pattern when she saw one. Ty and Yang fought at least once every day for the past eight weeks since the year began, only to get beat by her over and over again. In Ty's defense, though, he and Yang were more or less on the same level, and he was always getting better. Hell, their most recent match ended in an exhausted draw.

Ty hadn't _exactly_ kept his admiration for the blonde brawler exclusive to Goldwitch's class. Ruby had counted a large number of times that she had seen Ty looking at Yang, and _how_ he was looking at the older sister. Too many times than Ty would ever admit to. He appreciated that Ruby had been discrete when she outright asked if, and why, Ty had feelings for her older sister. Ty had drawn the short stick to clean out the sparring pit in the main arena on school grounds and the younger girl volunteered to stay behind and help out. Ty and Ruby were friends enough that he could confide in her some of his secrets.

 _"I don't know...How do I say it? Sure, she's kicked my ass from here to Browepont but...I can't help admire her. She inspires me, Ruby. To do better. To_ be _better_. _Everything she does is so incredible, she shines like the stars on a clear night. Sometimes she shines so brightly that I have to look away."_

Ruby had let out one of the longest "Aws" Ty had ever heard from a girl her size. Defensively he derided it as sappy nonsense. Ruby insisted it was sweet. Ty had his doubts nonetheless.

"'She inspires me'," he huffed and shook his head. "Yeah total sap."

"Who inspires you?"

A hand landed on Ty's shoulder and he jumped in surprise. He spun around to yell at whoever had snuck up him only to be nose-to-nose with Yang, grinning from one ear to the next mere inches from Ty's face. He dropped his books and leaped back with a hand clamped over his gaping mouth before the tapestry of obscenities roared out. Yang crossed her arms as she watched him catch his breath with a wry smirk.

"Yang!" He heaved and clutched at his chest. "For—For Christ's sake! Don't sneak up on me like that, dammit! You damn near gave me a heart attack!"

"Ah-huh," she tutted, clearly amused with herself. An eyebrow rose up while her trademark grin swept across her face. "Who inspires you?"

Ty blinked, his mouth soundlessly opening and closing. Seconds dilated as he stormed up a good excuse. "Well, heh, um… You see I...I, uh—" Ty desperately glanced around for a distraction to either break the sudden conversation or get Yang to forget about it long enough to get away. His gunmetal eyes landed on a flowing red hood a few feet away.

"Ruby!" Ty tugged her over and slung an arm over her shoulders. "How'd class go for you, Munchkin?"

It was a low move. Ty knew she hated being called that, but as he glanced back and forth at her and Yang and her he hoped she would get the idea. And then, something short of brilliance happened.

She grinned at him and said, "Hey Yang, what's going on?"

"Hey, sis! Tyrus here was just telling me how inspiring I am!" Yang smiled at Ruby. Mischief twinkled in the older sister's eyes as she sent a playful wink in Ty's direction.

Ruby raised an eyebrow and glanced at the young Hunter. A smile of her own growing on her pale face.

Ty managed to squeak out, "Ruby—" but the damage was done.

"Well, it's about time! Jeez! I was starting to wonder when he'd finally spit his crush on you out. So when's the date?"

It took a moment for the Boreale scion to register what Ruby said. When the words clicked Ty's jaw dropped through the floor and landed somewhere in the middle circles of Hell, only for some kindly denizen of the Inferno kick it back up and reconnected it with the rest of his head.

Ty felt the color drain from his face. He flickered his eyes to Yang, who was looking right at him with her own lavender eyes equally as wide and cheeks flushed. Ruby stood there a moment and processed the situation, a rotating hourglass spinning in place above her head, and immediately tensed up when she finally realized what she had just done. Ruby took a deep breath and a flurry of apologies burst from her mouth over and over.

All the while Ty stared at Yang in horror.

"I, uh...I u-um, I'm just g-gonna..." Ty stepped backward, stumbling over his dropped books and stopped after catching his balance and averted his eyes to the floor. His face felt like it was on fire.

"Ty!" Yang called after him but Ty was already halfway down the hall. "Ty, wait!"

"Oh man!" Ruby's hands clasped against her face in horror of what she just did. "Ohmanohmanohmanohman! I messed up really bad! Like, really, really, _really_ bad! _Total_ violation of Guy Code! I-I didn't know! I thought that Ty told you that he has a crush on you and I just up blurted out that you inspire him and asked when your date was and—!"

Tears welled up in Ruby's eyes and burst out into a fountain. "I'm the worst friend _ever_!"

Yang grabbed her sister and gave her a shake. "Ruby! You're spiraling sis! Get a hold of yourself."

Ruby met her sister's eyes and closed hers. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, twice. "Okay. I'm done. Thanks, Yang."

"Good, now. What did you just say?" The blonde watched her sister blink, confusion washed over Ruby's face and her head tilted to one side.

"What?"

Yang sighed before she gently shook her little sister by the shoulders. "What did you say? About Ty?"

"He...That he's inspired by you?"

" _Before_ that, Ruby!"

"H-He's crushing on you?"

Ruby watched as her sister stumbled back, her face flickering between emotions at a breakneck speed. One moment alarmed, then shocked, then overjoyed before Yang's features finally settled on panic. "I gotta find Ty! Thanks, sis!"

The young huntress barely got a word out before Yang whirled around and took off running down the hall in the direction Ty went, his forgotten books piled in her arms, long blonde hair fluttering behind her.

"Well, that was something."

Ruby jumped as Blake seemingly materialized into being beside her in the hallway.

"Blake!" The black haired girl smiled at Ruby before her amber eyes flickered in the direction her partner went running.

"You know, Yang never shuts up about him after she finishes in Goodwitch's class," Blake said. "You know, I actually caught her on Duster the other day prowling through his profile? She didn't even bat an eye, just blushed and bit her tongue at me," Blake brought the back of her hand against her temple and adopted an exaggerated impression of her teammate. "'Oh, Blake! Isn't Ty just the cutest thing? Look at him in that suit! And look at his _smile_! Ahh, I just want to chew on those little hamster cheeks of his. Ooh-woo!'"

Blake jerked her mouth open wide, jutted her tongue out, thrust a finger towards the back of her throat and made a gagging sound as she squeezed her eyes shut. Both of the girls giggled insatiably.

"Come on," Blake said after they had calmed down. "Let's go back to our room, I'm sure we'll hear all about it when Yang gets back. And Weiss is waiting for her homework."

Nodding, Ruby took one last look in the direction Ty and Yang went, a smile on her face as she hollered after them. "Good luck sis!"

* * *

 _A/N: Thus, it begins. Bit of a true story on the confession fiasco. I was caught in an encounter between my sister and current brother-in-law when I was a Junior in high school. Take a guess as to who I was supposed to be in that little anecdote._


	2. Chapter 2: So She's His Dork

_A/N: Heads up folks, it's about to get **steamy**._

* * *

 **Chapter 2  
** **So She's His Dork**

Ty slammed the door to Team Brass' room before he sank to the ground and grabbed fistfuls of his namesake hair. The scene in the hallway endlessly replaying in his head.

"Stupid, stupid, STUPID!" He thumped the back of his skull against the door between each word. "What the factual flapping fuck just happened?"

 _You confessed to the single most gorgeous girl in your class by proxy and took off like a bandit before you could get a proper response,_ said a little voice in his head that sounded suspiciously too much like Jiminy Cricket.

Two more thumps punctuated, "Not. Helping."

A knock on the door and Ty faintly caught a muffled, "Ty?"

Ty let out a long and shaky breath before he stood up and yanked the door open. The placid features of Deacon Rackley-Blues looked back at him with something approaching alarm and surprise. Devoid of his usual jazz-rock attire the saxophone maestro and affable loser looked very much like any average Joe off the street. If it weren't for Deacon's hot-pink sunglasses and differently colored eyes, Ty wouldn't have even recognized him.

"Hey, Deac," Ty said and left the door open for his partner to enter. Deacon's rosy lenses belied the frown growing in his emerald and amber eyes alongside his thin lips.

"Jesus, dude, you look like the day after entrance exams."

"Yeah, I know," Ty flopped onto his bed and heaved a ragged, explosive breath. Deacon looked up from his dresser, where he was changing into his casual attire.

"Haven't heard that sigh in a while," the music man observed.

Ty snapped his tongue against his teeth loudly. "Today's been a not great day."

"Port make you wrangle a Razoram again?"

"No, worse."

"A Manticore?"

"I wish."

Deacon crossed his arms and adopted a contemplative frown before he snapped his fingers and thrust his arm out to point and exclaimed, "He made you give an oral report on the time you slew that nest of Mudralisks and their Queen?"

Ty propped himself in his elbows and shot a chastising scowl at his teammate. "Dude for the seventeenth time, no one is gonna believe that I did that. You were _there_ and didn't believe it. You still don't!"

Deacon opened his mouth and raised a finger to object but stopped and after a moment to consider, lifted his palm while offering a conceited nod. Ty let himself fall back into the bed once more, and the duo shared an uncomfortable silence.

"So…what happened?"

Ty clapped a hand to his forehead and grimaced as he replayed the encounter with his crush over and over. "I got wrapped up in my thoughts, and Yang overheard me talking about how she inspires me. I caught Ruby in the hallway, and I hauled in Ruby for backup. But then _she_ ," Ty added a little too much venom to the pronoun than was necessary, "let it slip that I liked Yang, right in front of her."

Deacon relented a sharp whistle. "Ouch. What'd you do?"

Ty dragged his palm over his face and said through gritted teeth, "I _freaked out,_ and I _ran_. Here. I was just reeling everything in when you walked in."

"Ooh, buddy," his partner tutted. Ty whipped his head up to glare at his partner as Deacon shook his head.

"Hey, screw you, pal. I'm not in any worse from that fiasco with Crazy Jane."

"Easy, kemosabe," Deacon threw his hands up with their palms out to show his good intentions. "Hear me out, man. So she knows, not under the _ideal_ circumstance, but she _knows_. Isn't that a good thing? I mean, think about it, if she likes you back, then she likes you back, and if she doesn't, you can find someone else and just be friends."

"Oh yeah, friend zoned by the woman of my dreams. That's sure to turn out great," Ty snorted and rolled his eyes while he pushed himself up into a sitting position. "If I don't fall over dead from the shock of rejection."

"C'mon, Ty, you're built of sterner stuff than that."

"Yeah," Ty rasped, took in and let out a long and deep breath, already accepting his fate. "It's still gonna hurt like a bitch."

Deacon chuckled as he slipped his arms into a black button down shirt. "Nature of the beast."

"I know. And you have a point, _exactly_ one point," Ty emphasized, shooting down the triumphant smirk drawing itself on Deac's lips. "Maybe I should go...talk to her about it, clear the air and tell her properly."

"'Properly?'"

Ty nodded. "I was gonna ask her out tomorrow after Goodwitch's class. We start sparring with our semblances, and I was planning to ask after our match."

Deacon's brow furrowed as he pondered the meaning behind the statement. It wrinkled up when the implication dawned on him. "Oh..."

Ty laughed at the soft-spoken fridge realization. "Yeah, 'oh.'"

Deacon blew out a breath of his own and scratched the back of his head. "Well...I say you ask her anyway."

Ty snorted solemnly. "You think it will help?"

"Certainly can't hurt," Deacon agreed as he finished the last button on his shirt and grabbed his fluorescent blue coat from the rack on his end of the room and flipped the collar out. "I'm heading out."

"Taking Jane to see that God-awful play she likes again?"

"A lady never asks, and a gentleman never tells," Deacon declared, a finger thrust at Ty. " _You_ , get your ass up and go get your girl!"

Ty nodded and pushed himself off the bed as Deacon departed, yanking the door open and pulling it shut with a flourish.

"Goddamn dandy show off," Ty muttered as he stood and made for his dresser. He caught a glimpse of himself in the floor-ceiling mirror set against the wall across the door. The first decoration erected by team BRSS' fashion-forward fearless leader, Verra Steely, immediately after Goodwitch assigned the team's room.

He looked…crestfallen. That was the only word that came to mind. The color had noticeably drained from Ty's face, his eyes were sunken and dull, and his lips were turned into a stern scowl and a defeated hunch lent itself to his posture.

With a grim laugh, Ty realized Deacon was right. "I do look like the day after entrance exams!"

He laughed at his pathetic expression for a few moments before he straightened his shoulders out and held his head up. "Okay," he took in a deep breath and let it out with a sigh before he turned and made for the door.

"Just…talk to her."

His hand reached for the handle and stopped just before the tips of his fingers could even brush against it. His hand balled into a fist so tight he felt his fingernails break through the skin of his palm. "But…I don't know if I can."

Ty tensed when the handle jiggled and turned halfway. A soft knock sounded against the doorframe, and the door opened just a crack, and Yang called out gently, "Ty? Are you in here?"

Ty swallowed. "Yeah. C'mon in."

Yang pushed the door open and tentatively stepped into Team BRSS' room. She cast a few glances around before settling her eyes on Ty, and her heart plummeted into her gut. In the short time that Yang had known Ty, she had _never_ seen him with that kind of look on his face. His brows were lifted up and together, his mouth in a mournful slope, and his eyes worried and uncertain. There wasn't any of that mirthful sincerity of his gunmetal gray eyes that greeted everything in their field with a witty quip and a friendly smirk. He didn't have that presence of quiet resolve.

Ty did not look like Ty, and Yang's heart broke when he looked away. "God, Ty, you look awful."

Ty snorted, almost dismissively, and shook his head. "That's the second time I've heard that in less than ten minutes. So it must be true."

Yang frowned and set Ty's school books on top of a desk to her left before she rested her hands on her hips. "I don't like this look you're giving me. This is not a 'Ty' look."

"I...I'm not having the best day. At the moment," he said with a sigh that carried an overwhelming amount of defeat. "My crush's kid sister blurts out that I'm nuts for her, I take off in the opposite direction to cower in my room, and now she's here confronting me, but I can't think of anything to say. Not a good time for being Tyrus Boreale."

Yang laughed and sighed when she leaned back against the door, setting her palms on her lap. "Can I say something?"

Ty nodded but didn't meet Yang's eye.

"I wanna say that I am sorry, Ty," she started, hoping the tremble in her voice was not as apparent as it felt. "I am so, _so_ sorry. I choked when Ruby said…that," she settled after failing to find any other way to describe the event in the hallway, "and that as unworthy of me and all kinds of unfair to you. I can be pretty dense, yeah, but I was shocked. I mean, but the good kind of shocked not the bad kind of shocked."

Yang closed the short gap between them and caught Ty's eyes. "Ty I never, ever, got the impression you liked me. It was...It _is_ kinda weird."

Yang's panic jumped when a heart wrenching hurt washed over Ty's face and Yang frantically waved her hands in front of her, and her attempt at back peddling did nothing but jumble her words together. "Okay that sounded even worse—it's not weird that you like me it's weird because I like you. I mean, I _really_ like you, Ty. I've had just the biggest schoolgirl crush on you for weeks but I never, ever thought you would like me back and…" Yang could almost laugh at how fast Ty's expression changed when she said that.

 _No!_ She chided in her thoughts. _Focus!_ Yang took a deep breath and grabbed Ty's hands in hers, the heat from the flush rising in her cheeks starting to hurt physically. "I'm a tomboy. I'm too tall for most guys liking, I'm loud, obnoxious and I swear a lot. I didn't think any guy _I_ liked _would_ like me back and you are always such nice guy, and you're one of my friends, and I am _so_ grateful for that. But I can't keep my head straight when it comes to you sometimes, Ty. I like to think of myself as a smooth talker, but I always get airy when I'm around you, and…I mean, you mean so much to me that the thought that I hurt you tears me up inside. It breaks my heart to see you like this, and since I've gone this far, I figure I might as well give this a shot."

Yang lifted her hands to cup Ty's face in her palms as he stared at her perplexed. When his lips parted as he went to reply, Yang cut him off by pressing her lips against his. For a moment they stood like that. Yang figured the shock had stalled Ty's system, or at least she hoped that was it. That was what made it all the more satisfying when she went to break the kiss off, only for Ty to envelope Yang in his arms and pull her against him with a yank, and Yang gave a start that sent both of them tumbling to the floor.

They groaned but didn't separate; they pulled tighter against each other. Ty slammed his lips against hers, and Yang busied her hands in Ty's hair. She mewled at the deep growl she felt in Ty's chest and realized Ty jumped headlong into the deep end. His kiss was not just passionate, but desperate. Like a man in the desert stumbling across an oasis. Ty set one hand on the small of her back while the other swept up to cup the nape of Yang's neck and pulled Yang's figure against him. She opened her mouth to moan, only to be invaded by Ty's tongue to plunder hers.

They devoured each other, kissing lips and teeth and tongue. Ty's hand moved over Yang's body, crushing her against his barrel chest while taking hold of Yang's thigh and pulled her leg over his hip while he rolled them into a more comfortable position. Yang broke away to catch her breath, but Ty didn't let her off for long, trailing his lips down her chin and along the curve of her jaw, across Yang's blistering red cheeks and back to her waiting lips. Yang took her turn to dart her tongue out to bait Ty's, and the two organs balled together like battling serpents.

"Ty…" Yang whimpered when Ty moved his hands down her legs and shifted her on top of him so he could cradle the small of her back in his palms. Yang thrust her hips back and moaned. "Ty!"

Ty broke away and gasped for air, his lips feathering along her cheeks, across her nose, gently along the line of her jaw and down into the hollow of her throat.

"Tyrus!" Yang exclaimed with a laugh, the blonde brawler shoved Ty's shoulders back with enough force to make them thud against the carpeting. They laid like that for several minutes, staring into each other's eyes as they caught their breath. Ty licked his swollen lips to speak first.

"That was…I don't even have the words to describe that," Ty laughed. Yang joined in his merriment and slid off Ty's lap so the young Hunter could sit upright.

"None that's you use in front of a lady, anyway," Yang smiled devilishly. Ty snorted and tugged Yang up into a sitting position before he wrapped his arms around her. Yang marveled at the throb of his heart against her back.

"Okay," Ty said, deadpan. "How would you say it?"

"I'd say 'wow,' but _something_ 's telling me that doesn't do it credit," she answered teasingly, turning her head around to give him another quick peck before snuggling into place under his chin.

"You are such a dork," Ty laughed and pulled his arms tighter around Yang and nuzzled his face into her vibrant blonde hair.

Yang grinned and giggled, "Yeah, but now I'm your dork."

* * *

 _A/N: Okay, steaminess over. Go and put away your "favorite" sock and banana scented hand lotion, creeps. Next chapter will cover Team BRSS' intrepid leader. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave a review!_


	3. Chapter 3: So Yeah, Ty's Lost A Lot

_A/N: Some insight into how Yang and Ty met. Minor snowflaking here but it ties into my (two-sentence) outline for Ty's character and the rest of team BRSS; pronounced Brass._

 _Anyway, a new chapter, woo!_

 _— Saulderon_

* * *

 **Chapter 3  
** **So Yeah, Ty's Lost A Lot**

Yang is the sort of person that can tell a lot about someone by the way they fight. It was a trait that came in handy with her skill set. And the application thereof.

As the best fighter on Team RWBY—or the one with the highest combat score average, at least—Yang had been given an offer to participate in an advanced contact sparring class operated by Professor Goodwitch. It was an opportunity to receive training and advice from a few of Beacon's departing seniors and veteran huntsmen and huntresses. Its stated mission was to help the next generation of Remnant's defenders steel themselves for the many foes they would face on their missions; Yang joined because it gave her a chance to fight people.

Walking in on the first day of the class with a grin that threatens to split open her face, Yang opens her arms to take a deep breath. She savors the eager and exciting atmosphere charging the quaint arena on the far side of the school. All around Yang sees and hears students in their starting and finishing grades alongside seasoned professionals. The accumulating host of people rousing a din of chatter as they swap stories from their many missions, trade advice and instruct techniques accumulated from years of dedicated study, old-fashioned hard knocks, or both.

 _It's going to be a great year!_ Yang thought, already tingling with excitement from her head to her toes.

"Greetings, Yang!" A familiar voice calls out over the din of conversation and Yang threw a wave at the flash of fire-color hair that rushes to her.

"Hey, Pyrrha," Yang raises her arm and knocks elbows with the Amazonian beauty. "Goodwitch recruit you too?"

"Mmm," Pyrrha nods pleasantly. "It was a surprise, but I gladly accepted."

"Clearly," the blonde brawler teases, not at all surprised. Being a four-time champion of Mistral's regional tournament likely opens up several opportunities.

What does surprise the honey-haired pugilist is the plum-haired boy accompanying Pyrrha through the gathering of people. He is maybe five or six inches taller than Yang, with broad, load-bearing shoulders that reminds Yang of old-timey dock workers and strongmen. A pair of teardrop mirror-lens Ray-Bans sunglasses hang from the collar of a _.45 Auto_ T-shirt from a recent concert, and the relaxed swagger to his gait complimented his chocolate brown aviator jacket. He gives a pleasant grin when Yang meets her lilac eyes with his gunmetal grays.

"Making friends already, Sis?" He says with a slight smirk.

"Already made, Ty," Pyrrha quips back. "My team and hers are across the hall from each other in the dorms."

He gives Yang a swift once over and nods. "Scandalous."

"Who's this?" Yang asks with a humored grunt.

Pyrrha's eyes pop open when she realizes her lapse in manners. "Oh! Do forgive me. Ty, this is Yang Xiao Long, she's a classmate and very dear friend. Yang, this is Tyrus, a cousin of mine on my mother's side from Boreale Coast."

"Tyrus," Yang teases the word out and smiles. It was cute. Like something someone names a puppy.

"Please, just 'Ty,'" he insists after a shiver. "Only my parents call me Tyrus, and that's when I've screwed up. Usually."

Yang smirks. " _Royally_ , I imagine?"

Ty closes one eye and chuckles. "Oh, _you_ I like. This your first year, too?"

Yang nods. "Yeah. Got picked out by Goodwitch for the course. Same story for you?"

"Sorta. I got more or less grandfathered into it."

Yang raises an eyebrow. "How's that happen?"

Ty indicatively jabs a thumb at Pyrrha. "Four-time Mistral regional champion," he points at himself. "Four-time Mistral regional runner-up."

Yang reels her head back and gives an impressed whistle. "Wow! That's quite a thing."

Pyrrha smiles pleasantly. "I've often debated which of our tracks is the more impressive."

"I'm amazed we haven't met sooner."

The boy offers a quick shrug, tilting his head pointedly. "Nature of my training, sadly."

Yang spares a curious glance at Pyrrha.

"Ty's training happened outside of Combat School," the fiery-haired Amazon explains. "He was Apprenticed by his parents and siblings. His family are perhaps the best Huntsmen—"

"Hunters," Ty corrects incessantly.

Pyrrha grins and rolls her eyes. "Yes, the best _Hunters_ on the Boreale Coast and the surrounding Grey Mountains," the look Pyrrha offers is a little too knowing. "Ty's very good at fighting."

"Not good enough to beat you on a striking score," Ty sucks on his back teeth and rolls his eyes.

Yang chuckles at the exchange. There was no such thing as a straight knock out in Mistral's higher tournament brackets. The fighters were too good for that. Instead, contestants were judged on their ability to hit their opponents physically, how many times, and where; even a Huntsmen with a fully depleted Aura could win over a more capable opponent if he landed the right hits enough times. It had been an addendum to professional tournament circuits that ran independently from the kingdoms meant to reign in the unimpeded run times of the furious bouts between two championing Huntsmen.

Still, Yang would give her new acquaintance the benefit of the doubt. It could not be easy consistently competing against the best and brightest fighters in all of Mistral, only to lose the title time and time again to the same person. Especially when that person was a girl.

And family.

"You sound a little sour over it," Yang observes with a cocked brow.

Ty guffaws and shakes his head. "I'm just giving her shit. I've no issue finishing after a woman. As a matter of fact," a wry grin spreads across his lips as he holds Yang's eye. "I _prefer_ to."

Yang snorts and cups her hand over her mouth as heat rises in her face, glancing between the smug Ty and Pyrrha, who turns her head and furrows her brows at him ponderously.

"Why would you prefer—" Pyrrha wonders aloud before her brows jump to her hairline as the innuendo dawns on her. "Ty!"

Ty gives toothy smile and bows halfway with his hands sweeping to either side of him while Pyrrha crosses her arms and tips her head back, furiously glaring at the ceiling. "Ugh! That is so—I don't even know why I'm mad!"

Ty glances his eyes away, but his smirk only grows. "You know you love me."

Professor Goodwitch appeared in the centermost sparring ring under a bright spotlight as the rest of the building darkened. "Ladies, gentlemen, esteemed huntsmen and huntresses and returning graduates," the blonde Deputy Headmistress declared, addressing her guests first. "I would like to thank you for once again joining us for another year of taking our most enthused and capable students under your guidance and tutelage."

The professor's emerald gaze shifts audiences and ranges over the gathering of students when her eyes meet with Yang's, she tenses. "Students, returning upperclassmen and newly inducted first years. I'll keep this brief. Your objective in this course is simple: observe, engage, and take with you the many lessons we have to offer you here and harness them in your lives and careers."

"'Just as iron sharpens iron,'" Ty mutters. Yang lets an amused breath through her nose.

"Now to begin," Professor Goodwitch snaps her eyes onto the Ty, and he straightens his shoulders. "Mister Boreale, I understand you wished to be our first bout?"

"Yes, Professor," Ty replies, and Yang can practically see the capital 'P' as he spoke. "If it's not too bold, I'd like to show you southerners how to fight."

Goodwitch's stern veneer fractures a bit when her lips quirk up. "Shall Miss Nykos be your opponent today then? End some _unfinished_ grievances from last Spring?"

"Actually," Ty raises his arm up over Yang's head and inclines his wrist down, pointing an outstretching finger at her golden locks. "I'd like to fight her."

"So, you ready for Saunche's test tomorrow?"

Veera looked up from the tome of notes and into her caramel-washed reflection on Coco Adel's sunglasses. They were enjoying their break between classes outside of their favorite cafe, a small, family-owned shop called Ché, where their sisterhood first budded.

"Hmm?"

Coco grinned as she sipped on her coffee. "The Ballistic Physics unit exam is tomorrow if memory serves. Are you ready for it?"

Veera relented a defeated sigh, and her shoulders slumped. "As ready as I can be. Why is that class even a requirement? I wield chainsaw integrated into a sub-machine gun, not a sniper rifle like Ruby or...whatever Ty fancies using at any given moment."

Coco pointed at the thick binder with her chin. "Those Ty's notes then?"

"Alongside Pyrrha's, and Sango's, and mine," Veera beamed proudly. Coco snorted and covered her mouth with her hand to hide her smile.

The odd friendship of Veera Steely and Coco Adel went back more than a few years. Like most of Team BRSS, Veera had not trained in combat school. Under the guidance of her mother and mentor, Helena, Veera started her training at a very young age, undergoing an impressive curriculum in the ways of identifying and studying the behaviors of an immense variety of Grimm; familiar or obscure, small and gargantuan. If a beast of Grimm had been witnessed and recorded, Veera knew its name, its abilities, and, most importantly, how to kill it. She studied so extensively that Veera could pinpoint the characteristics of every single known species in the world from memory in moments, if not instantly. Helena had started combat training in the early part of Veera's formative years, instructing her daughter in the principles of strategy and tactic, against both Grimm and rival Huntsmen.

It was around that time Veera and Coco crossed paths.

They chanced upon each other on Ché's balcony when Veera was a week shy of thirteen. She and her parents had opted to tour Beacon Academy, Helena's alma mater, to give Veera a look at what her future training would involve. During the tour's break for lunch, the group was flown out to Vale City, Veera had discovered Coco at a table looking upset. When she had asked what was wrong, Coco had replied that she had been separated from her parents and didn't know where to look and—being alone in an unfamiliar city—had understandably started to panic. Veera and her father, Rocco, opted to stay with Coco while Helena whisked away to track down Coco's parents.

In an attempt to distract from the situation, and to break the uncomfortable silence, Veera had inquired about the design of the silver embroidery on Coco's blouse and sparked a conversation that went on for _hours_. The two girls got so into their dialogue that neither of them had noticed Helena returned with the Mistress and Master Adel until they had been promptly interrupted by Rocco.

Coco and Veera were fast friends after that and kept together for the rest of the trip, as close to being joined at the hip as metaphorically possible. "Friends by chance, sisters by choice," as their parents put it. Coco had thought it was sweet and poetic, Veera only rolled her eyes. The newly formed sisters kept in touch through the years through many ways, over phone and texts and emails and the CCT, while Veera threw herself into training and Coco waded her way through her first year at Beacon.

Veera had a challenging time of relearning to wield her sub-machine gun that she had named Teddy after she had built a small and functional chainsaw into it. Even with the weight of the saw's blade and the engine being balanced out by the encumbrance of a full sized SMG it took some getting used to Teddy's drastic change in handling. But Veera would openly admit she had an easier time than her surrogate sister.

Coco was understandably frustrated with having to adjust to her new school, keeping up with her classes while juggling her role as a team leader and getting to know her new teammates. It was hard, but Coco managed through it, with the support of the family forged in her team and compelled by an ever enthusiastic and increasingly jealous Veera. The weeks leading up to Veera's arrival to Beacon at the start of the term were equally exciting and carried a hefty amount of pressure. With Coco scrambling to employ a proper welcome for her best friend after the event organizer dipped out, and Veera dealing with a hiccup in her transcript records delayed her enrollment by three years. But after a good deal of elbow grease, some administrative investigating from Ozpin, and more luck than either of them thought possible, Verra stepped off the shuttle to Team CVFY excitedly waiting to greet her. Sans banner and confetti and fanfare band, but it was a happy occasion regardless.

After two months some of the reunion haze had faded, and now Veera and her best friend were sharing lunch on a bright afternoon in the early spring, under a cloudless blue sky, idly chatting about an upcoming exam that Veera was not unprepared for, but desperately uncertain about her ability.

"Cheer up, V," Coco chuckled and took another drink from her coffee. "SMGs have abilities all their own. Teddy can spit out an impressive load of lead in a small amount of time, doesn't have much of a kick and hardly weigh twelve pounds," Coco commented in hopes of supporting her stressing friend.

"Ten and three-quarters," Veera corrected but waved her hand dismissively. "That doesn't matter. I know what you're saying, and you're right, as _usual_ ," Veera sighed and took a gulp of her cream soda. She stared at a high-altitude transport making a contrail as it passed over the sky far overhead absently.

"D'you hear the Ty finally broke his losing streak today?"

Veera nodded. "I saw the video Jaune got of the match. I've got some of it on my Scroll if you're curious."

Coco thrust out her hand and made a grabbing gesture. "Gimme."

Veera snorted. Typical Coco, couldn't go more than a few seconds when there was gossip to have. Veera tapped through her Scroll to the offending video and handed her friend the tablet so Coco could see the fight for herself. Coco watched the remarkably well-shot video, mostly soundless save for the clatter of Yang's and Ty's strike's and Jaune's and Pyrrha's hushed commentary.

Coco let out a whistle when Ty ducked under a leaping strike from Yang and sent the pommel of his ax into Yang's midsection. "Ty's gotten better."

"Ty has always been 'better,'" Veera corrected, wincing at the snappish tone in her voice. "Sorry."

"No, no," Coco waved her hand."It seems like Yang's always given him the slip.

"I've seen the archive footage from Mistral's tourneys, he and Pyrrha are quite the fighters. But I think he met his match with Yang."

"Tch," Veera rolled her eyes. "Some part of me wonders if he let her win all those times."

"How so?"

Veera chortled. "For one? He's Hunter trained, lightning fast on his feet even with his armor and pin-point accurate, literally, with a gun. Two, he's observant to the point of obsession. He's pointed out more holes in my guard in ten minutes than I have in four years. Three, he doesn't play to be 'sporty' or 'fair.' Ty fights, he wins," Veera sniffed and scratched her neck. "Plus he's got that oplo-whatever. I wonder if he couldn't have pinned Yang if the round hadn't ended."

"Oplomancy," Coco informed. "I wondered that myself. A shame. It's a dying craft that I'm sure comes in handy facing down so many fighters with such a broad array of abilities."

"Oplomancy," Veera blew a raspberry as she repeated the bizarre term, exaggerating the syllables with puckered lips, a gesture that caused Coco to giggle.

"A shame Goodwitch ruled it a draw. Ty fought well."

"Ty will get his win, soon or later. I'm pegging the former," Veera said, flatly. "We should probably get to the terminal. It's like what? Two-thirty by now?"

Coco peeked over the rim of her classes to glance at her watch. "Two-twenty-seven. Close. You're only three minutes off this time."

"Whatever. It's about time we get going," Veera tossed her head back as she got up and threw her bag over her shoulder. "C'mon, shuttle leaves in twenty minutes."

A bead of sweat runs down Yang's flaring nose as she saws gasped breaths that heave her shoulders. She keeps her eyes locked with Ty's as he paces around her from across the arena, studying her for his next attack like a predator. The fight clock has only been running for eight minutes, but Yang feels like they have been going for twelve rounds. Her arms feel like dead weight, it hurts to put too much pressure on either foot, and the glare of the overhead lights stabs her eyes and forces her to squint.

But she _is_ winning. Arguably. Ty is a talented and insanely fast opponent; Yang is just a bit faster and a creature of habit. Yang was starting to pick up on his little tells. They are minute and subtle, but Yang deigns enough out of them that she can adjust her strategy. She slides her foot back and dips into a high crouch when Ty spins one of the split shortswords and changes the direction of his pacing.

He smiles at her and ducks forward.

Yang smirks. _Cheeky._

Ty had used the same maneuver twice before, dashing forward into a feigning strike for Yang to bring her guard up front and deflect the attack and Ty would veer down and stab at her unguarded midsection or target one of her knees to throw off her footing. It was a good move, damned good, but Yang is ready for it this time and makes to jump back to counter him.

Only Ty isn't in front of her anymore.

He was next to her. His arms reared back, and the tips of the crescent shortswords aimed directly at Yang's chest. His face a look of professional concentration and more than a little fatigue, his eyebrows drawn together and his nostrils flaring and his cheeks flushed red.

 _Sonnuvabitch._ Yang thinks and puffs her breath out her nose. _I guess he's pretty cute._

With startling speed Yang grabs one of the blades with her right hand as they come forward, narrowly missing her. She yanks her elbow back, using her backward momentum as a center fugue to swing her left arm around. She squeezes the trigger on her gauntlet, and a shot calls out, propelling her left fist into the right of Ty's jaw. She strikes him right on the Button. Yang lands on her back, and Ty falls into a roiling heap, going right off the stage. Yang jumps back to her feet in a ready stance in the middle of the arena with her heart throbbing in her ears. Then it dawns on her, and a huge smile crosses her features.

She won!

"Woooo!" The blonde cheers out with her arms thrust into the air. "Score one for the sunrise dragon!"

Professor Goodwitch shoots Yang a pointed scowl as she and another pair of the guest Huntsmen make their way to the side of the stage where Ty had landed. A placid Pyrrha, sporting a smug grin, follows in their wake and a small commotion rises from that side of the stage as the instructors examine the boy from Boreale. Yang 's excitement dies off as the minutes start accumulating, and she becomes more and more uncomfortable.

"Is, uh," Yang laughs nervously and scratches at the back of her head. "Is he okay?"

The shuttle slowed its approach to almost a crawl as it hovered over Beacon's shuttle pad, waiting for the control tower to direct it to land. After a quick exchange between the pilots and the controllers, the shuttle was hovering a cleared landing deck in a rush of engine turbines and slicing winds. The aircraft set down on the flight deck, and a few moments later the lock on the ramp disengaged with a metallic clang and came down with a grinding sound that made Veera's ears ring slightly. At once a small gathering of Beacon students and a few professors stepped off and hurried their separate ways, Veera and Coco among them, passing the time with idle chatter.

The duo had just cleared the courtyard when a slow and sleazy sax number echoed across the otherwise quiet walkway to Beacon, coming from Veera's purse.

Coco cocked her head and hummed pleasantly at the drowsy tempo. "That Deac's new piece?"

"Mhmm," Veera grinned. "He makes good stuff."

Coco chuckled. "I sometimes wonder if he missed his calling."

"Maybe," Veera said, mostly to herself, and pulled out the offending device. "What can I say, he's a good musician."

A notification on the lock screen revealed the cause: a text from Team Brass' music maestro.

"Huh," Veera clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and opened the message and flicked her eyes over the screen. Her jaw smacked against the pavement.

"What."

"V? What's up?" Coco raised one of her brows when her sister stopped dead in her tracks. When Veera didn't answer the elder Huntress snuck a peek over her friend's shoulder at the little gadget in Veera's hand. Her eyes popped at the four words on the screen.

 _The dragons have met._

"Oh," Coco couldn't help the smile on her face if she tried. "No way."

Veera snapped the device closed and turned on her heel. The about-face face nearly sent her into colliding with Coco, but the young fashionista just flowed around her like a breath of wind, and Coco whipped out her Scroll and jotted out quick texts to the rest of her team and sent them off as she hurried after Veera.


	4. Chapter 4: So We're Cool

_A/N: Well. I'm all caught up with RWBY and WOW does **that ending** leave a chunk of holes in the plot. Won't be affecting this fic too much, matter of fact it neatly shuffles into the plot I have in mind. Whether or not said plot leads to me recategorizing this as a crossover—probs not, that would lead to some spoiling of a few twists I'm planning—a_ _nd a possible application of story-relevant lore dumps is something I'll have to mull over._

 _But that's neither here or there at the moment._ _Enjoy and **please** review!_

* * *

 **Chapter 4**  
 **So We're Cool  
**

Ty took a deep, languid breath and let it out in a lethargic groan while Yang watched him from the other side of his bed. Admittedly, a short distance away.

After he and Yang had settled down and expressed their mutual feelings for each other the fledgling pair had thought up ideas for their first date, both of them eager to get out and do something together. With the flight schedule for the shuttles to and from Vale wrapped up for the day, however, the duo had opted out of tried-but-true activities for young couples in favor of spending the rest of the day in Team BRSS' room, Yang entwined in Ty's arms, laid out in his bed, talking idly to each other over any little thing they could.

Ty cuddled her closer and closer against him, and Yang was more than happy to oblige his proximity. Even when they ran out of things to talk about, he and Yang simply basked in the glory of being together on an as-of-yet undecided standing that was ecking closer and closer to romantic with every passing minute. Sapped as he was of his energy after a day of classes and the trauma of his confession by proxy, he knew in his gut he would have to think up some way to make it up to Ruby. Ty didn't blame the energetic redhead for the slip, honestly. If there was anyone to blame, Ty would level the finger at himself, it was his own fault for dragging the the poor girl into the sudden confrontation with her older sister, unfairly, to cover up something that could have been a major stepping stone in Ty's relationship with Yang. Maybe even _the_ stepping stone. Ty had panicked and played the first card he had seen rather than look at his whole hand, and it blew up in his face.

In the _best_ possible way, granted, but blown up none the less.

A yawn drew Ty's jaw down and out wide and he stretched his arms over his head before he rubbed at his eyes blearily. He met Yang's gentle purple eyes as they stared at him from across the bed, where Yang had plated her elbow and propped her head on her palm to watch him. A beatific smile crawled its way along Ty's lips.

"Hey."

Yang giggled at the back of her throat. "Hey."

Ty laughed in turn. "What?"

"You," the blonde brawler answered. "Your nose was all crinkled up adorably and you had this far away look in your eyes, deep in thought?"

Ty nodded. "I was."

"Feel like sharing?"

"Where I'd like to take you for our first date," the young Hunter answered and Yang lifted a brow expectantly. "I know this nice little stretch of beachfront not too far off campus. Got a nice view of the river from the cliffside. Great place to watch the sunset."

Yang blinked and the corner of her mouth quirked up and she rolled over to laugh heartily for a few seconds before laying a quick peck on Ty's lips and scooting up against him again. A bewildered Ty cleared his throat and looked at her.

"What was that about?"

"I'm just basking in my luck," Yang folded her hands behind her head and leaned against Ty's chest, utterly contented. "Twenty minutes ago I was in such a panic about putting you on the spot I hadn't stopped to consider maybe I had reacted a bit too brash," Yang sighed and tipped her head down. "I haven't even apologized."

"Yang..."

Yang flicked her wrist up and pressed a finger against Ty's lips and shook her head. "No, I need to say this. It was wrong of me to get on you like that. I just wanted to give you a hard time and clue you into how I felt about you," Yang's lips pressed and she shook her head. "Okay, no, I _wanted_ to make you uncomfortable enough that maybe you would have been goaded into asking me out. But I _swear_ I didn't expect Ruby to crush bomb either of us."

The two were quiet for a long moment before Ty gave a dry snort and pressed his lips against the top of Yang's crown. ""Neither did I, honestly," he said. "I mean, I knew your kid sister was dense, but God damn."

The blonde barked an explosive laugh. "You don't know the half of it," she retorted, drumming her knuckles against Ty's sternum. "But it turned out for the best. Here I am, curled up in your arms as the rest of the day zooms by."

"Mhmm," Ty agreed. Yang pulled the sleeve of her uniform back to inspect her watch.

"Speaking of which, what time is it?"

"Quarter to three," Ty said. "You don't still have classes, do you?"

"Just one," Yang said with more than a slight amount of assurance. "Philosophy with DeVert. It starts at four but it's on the other side of campus."

Ty's replying sigh pointedly placed his disappointment. "You should probably get going."

"Well…" Yang hummed contemplatively before she rolled onto her knees and faced Ty, but made no effort to stand. "I've _probably_ got a good ten minutes before I _need_ to go. And Professor DeVert is _always_ late."

Ty raised a brow. "Yang Xiao Long. I hope you're not suggesting intentionally run late for class."

"I'm not suggesting anything," Yang entwined her hand in the tie of Ty's uniform and pulled him closer, her head tilted one way and her eyes slowly sliding shut.

"Ah-hem."

Yang and Ty's heads snapped to the doorway so fast an audible pop sounded from their necks. At the door to Team BRSS's room, to Veera Styles tapping her foot, her hands planted firmly on her hips. A scowl and a cocked brow on her delicate features complemented her chastising glare. Behind her poked the beret-clad head of Coco Adel, her sunglasses firmly placed on her brow and a criminally wide grin on her lips. Yang darted her eyes between the two fashionistas at the door and Ty as he blinked at them, utterly unfazed.

"Hey, Co, hey V. What's up?" Ty greeted in a placid tone that caught Yang off guard. She snapped her eyes back to him as her mouth fell open slightly and her brows drew together. The blue haired boy looked back at her with a shrug as his tie slipped out of her hand.

"Okay," Veera took in a breath and closed her eyes. "One, I really should have knocked before I opened the door. That's on me. Two, from this point on, no romantic liaisons in the team room; that's just for personal courtesy. And three," Veera's eyes popped open and an immense smile erupted on her face so fast Yang worried it would cause damage. "I am so happy for you guys!"

"Veera, hon, you're shouting," Coco playfully chided.

Only remotely phased, Veera's hands formed into fists and shook when they came up under her chin. "I'm sorry! It's just I can't even tell you how long I've waited to see you two together. Like, _together_ together! I mean I could just—" Her chin dropped and the leader of team BRSS elicited a long, ecstatic shriek that echoed through the room and went down the hall in either direction.

Yang flicked her eyes between Coco, Veera, and the cloud of twinkling stars that orbited her blown out eyes, and Ty, who shared her perturbed look. "Did she just—?"

"Squeal like a fangirl?" the second year said with a wink. "Yep."

Veera composed herself by straightening out her uniform and cleared her throat before saying, "But seriously, congrats! I am almost beyond words for it. I mean, you guys make a such great couple!"

Ty and Yang snorted. "We do?"

"Uh-huh!" Veera nodded enthusiastically. "You two are more or less the hot 'will-they-won't-they' bracket, not quite on Jaune and Pyrrha's level but pretty close."

Ty made a perturbed grimace and buzzed his lips like a horse. "It's been an _hour_ , V. _Tops_. We haven't even gone on a date yet."

Coco shrugged and offered, "Rumor mill turns fast. Once word gets out I imagine that Ren and Nora will take up the will-they-won't-they slot in the school's gossip circles. We're worse than a knitting group like that."

Ty snorted and Yang clapped a hand onto her cheek. "Poor Nora."

"Right. Anyway," Veera cut in and jerked a thumb up and behind her. "Ty, get yer gear. I've got new maneuvers I want to practice."

"Ugh," Ty grunted with a half-serious amount of disdain. " _More_ of them? There _is_ supposed to be a limit to the number of patterns we have to plan out."

"Oh, you know you love it. Meet me down in the amphitheatre, Sango should be down there already," Veera winked an eye closed and grinned. "You can walk your _girlfriend_ to class, first, though. Just don't take forever."

 **...**

Ruby was upset. Something of a first for the normally laid-back and carefree girl.

At least, Pyrrha thought so. She hadn't known her fellow redhead for long, granted, but Ruby was more or less a combination of chipper pluck and every other bubbly emotion under the sun. Ruby had her up and down days, the girl was only fourteen, Pyrrha was amazed that the flux of assignments, projects, tests, and the constant preparation for the first year missions had all but turned Ruby's ear to ear smile into a pleasant, cheery grin and lessen her outbursts of perpetual optimisms to quiet musings on determination. And that was on a _bad_ day.

To see her _genuinely_ upset was…unsettling.

"Ruby?" Pyrrha said with almost motherly gentleness. "Is everything alright?"

"No," the young girl asked. "I messed up, Pyrrha. I messed up bad."

One of Pyrrha's brows rose from her brow and her lips puckered. "Did you forget the assignment for Professor Morton was due yesterday?"

Ruby shook her heada nd stared ahead, "No I finished it over the weekend. He said he wants to have it mounted."

"You fired your scythe too many times in a row and blew the barrel out?"

"No," the redhead groaned. "Worse."

Pyrrha scowled as she pondered. "You got too close to the burner, again, and your hood caught on fire, again, and you panicked and wrecked Professor Bunsen's lab, again?"

Ruby gave a startled cry and slammed her head against the lecture desk. "No! Worse than that!"

"Forgive me if I find that hard to image," Pyrrha's lips curved slightly. Then it flipped into a concerned frown. "It doesn't have anything to do with Weiss being out with the flu, does it? Are you symptomatic? Would you like for me to take you to the infirmary?"

Ruby shook her head. "Not sick, just a helping of guilt."

Pyrrha cocked her head to one side. "I don't follow."

The younger redhead heaved a hard sigh and looked up after a few moments. "I put Ty on the spot and I'm afraid he's mad at me."

Pyrrha's face pinched up in a cringe she hoped wasn't nearly as noticeable as it felt. "You didn't mention the Mudralisk incident in front of Professor Port, did you?"

Ruby offered a loud whine and buried her head back into her folded arms, managing a muffled, "I wish!"

"I don't see how it could possibly be that bad," Pyrrha trailed off and glanced at Blake, who was watching the interaction with a bemused grin. "What?"

"Yang was giving Ty some crap over something he said under his breath," the Faunes explained. "Ty felt cornered so he dragged Ruby into it for a little back up."

"Makes sense," Pyrrha nodded and Blake's grin widened.

"You'd think that, but our fearless leader misread the situation and blabbed that Ty is crushing on Yang."

Pyrrha blinked at both of them and her head recoiled back. Nora's head lifted up from where she was copying down notes from her textbook and set her full attention on Blake. "Oh! _Reeeeeeeeally?_ When?"

Blake smirked and elbowed her young leader. "Last class."

The bubbly carrot top's jaw dropped. "No!"

"Wait." Pyrrha interjected. "Ty has a crush on Yang?"

Blake nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah. Hard."

"Harder than JAune is on Weiss," Ruby said from under her arms.

Upon hearing his name, the toe headed screwball popped his focus from his texting one of his sisters on his Scroll and into the conversation his friends were having around him, offering an incredulous, "Huh?"

Blake leaned back in her seat to address him. "Ruby let it slip that Ty's got a crush on Yang," the brunette smiled. "Right. To her. Face."

Pyrrha could practically see the hourglass icon hover over her partner's head as he processed the information. Jaune's brow was slack for the briefest of moments before jumping wide in shock and tightening into a scolding scowl. "Ruby!"

The younger girl whimpered defenselessly. "I know! I'm sorry, it was an accident!"

"That's not an excuse."

"It turned out okay, I think," Blake argued. "Ty flushed white and red and bolted before Yang could get a word in. She took off after him, though. After she knocked Ruby's senses back into her. Literally."

"Hold on," Pyrrha held her hand up in a halting gesture. "You're telling me that Tyrus Boreale—whom I consider the brother I never had—and Yang Xiao Long, one of my closest friends, are romantically interested in each other and everyone knew about it but _me_?"

Blake blinked at the revelation. "Was it not obvious?"

Ruby actually lifted her head from her hidey hole and said, "I only knew about it because I outright asked him. I did notice he was spending a lot of time sparring against Yang."

"Really? I had always thought it was because professional interest or competitive intrigue," Pyrrha frowned and drew her brows together.

She couldn't believe she had not seen it before. Thinking back on the past few months, it made perfect sense. There was a dearth of dedicated pugilist fighters anywhere on the Regis Coast. None that Pyrrha could think of, at least, that could keep up with Ty or any of his family. The young and tempestuous Yang was a challenge Ty had never faced, so of course Pyrrha had seen their relationship as a building block for Ty to better his skills. To think that he had romantic feelings for Yang was…oddly fitting, Pyrrha thought with a slight grin. She was happy that he had put his heart out there for someone to see, but the fire haired Amazon was a little hurt Ty hadn't confided his affection for the bombshell boxer in her like she had secreted to Ty about her—as Ty put it—"schoolgirl crush" on Jaune.

Perhaps it was for the best, she mused to herself. Ty was a capable young man. He could look after himself. And he certainly didn't lack the graces Pyrrha did when it came to expressing her emotions to Jaune. Pyrrha wandered to the young knight as he read through the backlog of messages on his Scroll from his sisters and parents. Having nine people constantly worry after your well being must have been a daunting task to an outside observer like Pyrrha, but Jaune had been tempered for it. And the face of parted-lip concentration on his features was absolutely adorable.

"Did you know anything about this?" Pyrrha asked.

Jaune folded his arms in front of his chest and lolled his head from side to side. "I've had a feeling they liked each other but I didn't pry," he shrugged. "And I was a little preoccupied with trying not to get my butt kicked in full-contact sparring."

A lump rose up in Pyrrha's throat. "Jaune…"

Her attention shifted to the front of the room when the classroom door opened. The gathered Beacon students sat up at attention, expecting the slightly neurotic and overstressed Samantha DeVert to come jauntily through the doorway, only for Yang to curtly walk in, Ty's hand held firmly in hers, heads high despite the luminous blush that colored their cheeks. They exchanged a few quick and hushed words, before Ty turned to leave.

"Wait," Yang said, grabbing Ty's arm. Ty looked back at her for a long moment before he stepped in and cupped Yang's cheek in his free hand, Yang closed the space between them and tilted her head to give Ty a quick peck on the lips.

Pyrrha started when a sharp cracking sound struck her ears, and she looked over to see Ruby's jaw planted on the floor. She had to suppress a laugh and looked back to see Ty and Yang separate, his off hand running down her arm and hooking into the honey-haired pugilist's fingers and holding on for as long as they could while Ty made for the door. He said something that Pyrrha again didn't catch as Ty's and Yang's fingers separated. Yang offered a soft, pleasant smile as Ty turned away. Pyrrha caught his steel gray eyes and he cast her a wink before leisurely throwing a wave over his shoulder.

Yang lingered on the lecture room floor, watching Ty close the door behind him before she shrugged up her shoulders and hurried to the row the rest of Team RWBY was seated. She settled into her chair with a distant, wistful grin on her lips and a shimmer in her eyes Pyrrha was uncomfortably flustered by. She felt immediately embarrassed and envious at the same time. Her eyes flickered from her textbook and back to Yang setting an elbow on the desk and placing her chin in her palm, absently staring off at a corner of the room.

Nora popped up next to the blonde with a smug grin, her arms flopping up and down at her sides. _"Sooooo…?"_

Yang snapped out of her pleasant revelry and regarded Nora as if seeing her for the first time. "'So'? What?"

" _When_ 's your _date_?" Nora exclaimed and Yang blinked. "Your _first_ date. With Ty, I mean."

A smile that would make a Cheshire feel inadequate formed on the blonde brawler's lips. "Tonight. Right after class, if luck plays out. He's says he knows this beach just off campus where we can watch the sunset across the river."

Nora blinked several times and her expression went from giddy to curious with a ruffle of her forehead. "So, no target practice with explosive barrels? No shirtless fencing? No razor wire limbo?" Nora's hand clapped against her cheeks and she paled. "No _pancakes_?!"

"Nora," Ren chimed in at last. "Yang and Ty didn't have the best stepping off point. It's probably good they take things slowly."

"Oh!" Nora's head ripped to the side and pressed a finger to her lip in thought. "I guess that makes sense."

 _Glad to hear that._ Pyrrha kept the thought to herself, despite the smile tugging at her lips. Instead she asked, "Will you be out late?"

Yang shook her head quickly. "We'll be back before curfew. Ty might haul out a hiking stove so we can make dinner in the clearing but I doubt it'll be anything extravagant," Yang rubbed her thumbs together. "I'm…sorry this is how you had to find out, Pyrrha. I know how close you and Ty are, and I didn't intend for this to be sprung up on everyone, so…Yeah."

Pyrrha shook her head and set her hand on Yang's. "Of course not, Yang. I'm happy for you. The both of you."

Yang inhaled and let out a long breath. Her shoulders slumped down slightly and she settled in her chair. "Thanks, Pyr," an eye winked shut and an overtly smug grin curled up her cheeks. "Glad to see you're not the tiger sister I thought you were."

Professor DeVerte entered before Pyrrha could respond to Yang's quip, and instinctively all of the students snapped to attention. The professor swiftly piling through the latest set of graded assignments as she crossed to the podium.

"Well I'm pleased to say that it's actually a good afternoon to everyone. Last week's assignments are graded and aim happy to say you all did excellently. Very well articulated arguments, everyone. Most impressive," she said and set the stack of papers down and loudly sniffed through her nose. "On an off note, does anyone have any idea why Tyrus Boreale was wandering the halls singing 'Caught Up In You'?"

Pyrrha barked a terse laugh as Yang let her head fall against the desk.


	5. Chapter 5: So It's Our First Date

_A/N: Wiess makes her debut here, slight OOCness in effect given my touches for our resident Ice Queen's character._ _Enjoy and **please** review!_

* * *

 **Chapter 5  
** **So It's Our First Date**

The middle afternoon crept into the early evening by the time DeVert dismissed the class. The sun hung low enough to peek into the windows of the dormitories when Teams RWBY and JNPR made it back to their rooms and changed out of their uniforms. Yang opted for a quick shower, more than eager to wash off the sweat and grime from the morning bout with Ty in Goodwitch's Engagement Etiquette and Structure class. The student showers in the locker rooms were open, of course, but today was when Doctor Oobleck had scheduled a 'field trip' to the ruins off Beacon Hill. That turned out to mean the rough hour that Yang, typically, had to rest and refresh from fighting tooth and nail for three straight hours got cut to fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes for Yang to change out of her combat gear into her school uniform and bolt headlong to the other side of the school. It was an unfortunate little wrinkle in her routine, but Yang didn't let it bother her. She would hop into her team's shower. Easy solution.

Yang bolted clear to the dorm and was into her team's room in a heartbeat. She was partway out of her undershirt before she kicked the bathroom door shut and yanked the shower handle from the off position to the bold HOT lettering. The blonde brawler hurried to undress while the water heated to an agreeable temperature.

"C'mon, C'mon," she muttered, tapping her heel against the tile. Yang turned to grab one of the fleece throw-rugs from the towel rack and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror over the sink. Her ghostly figure threw her for a second and jerked back with a grimace.

"Should _probably_ think about getting some sun," she thought out loud, a contemplative grin grew on her lips as she posed for herself over and examined her shapely figure. "But damn do I look _fine_."

The reflection started to steam over, and Yang stuck her wrist into the stream and hissed quietly when the scalding water smacked her skin. She grabbed onto the handle and turned it the opposite way and test the water again after a moment, and found the temperature was agreeable. She stepped into the shower stall after adjusting the handle just a touch more.

Yang winced when she reached for her bottle of shampoo and a sharp pain stung on her shoulder. Inspecting the offending area, Yang discovered a series of faint yellow and blue bruises along the side of her arms.

"Compliments of Tyrus Boreale," Yang snickered, linking the mild injuries to the bout she and Ty had had that morning.

She thought back on the fight with a giggle as she lathered the soap into her hair, on how fiercely she and Ty had gone at it, matching each other strike for strike, but still managed to mix in a few playful barbs.

Since the term had started, their fights ended with either of them covered in a layer of sweat and breathing heavy—or knocked right out, in Ty's case—but Yang always pulled ahead of him. Six weeks straight Yang and Ty had squared off against one another at least once, either at the start of class or sometime before either of them had gotten worn out enough to be off their A-game. Every time, he changed up his approach slightly. A slash with his sword's main form would veer slightly left or right, a twin-fanged thrust from split shortswords would angle up or down, things like that. Ty would mix and repeat until he was tired of the effort of downing her and change his approach across the impressive arsenal of Beacon's local weapons master.

Yang was woe to admit it, but loss after loss, one weapon or set of weapons after the other, Ty kept coming back. She admired him for it. Ty and Yang would fight, and Yang would pound him into the ring. Day in and day out. But Ty was never sour about it; he was, in fact, the exact opposite. He congratulated her and came away with a determined grin and a challenged glint in his eyes. It was fun. Yang had _fun_ fighting Ty.

But the gap between Yang's grades of victories and Ty's measure of defeats grew narrower every fight. Quadratically. This morning Yang was confronted by the sudden but undeniable realization that Ty was not just keeping pace with her. He was close to surpassing her. If the timer for the match hadn't rung out when it had Yang would be wearing a losing notch on her belt, delivered by one Tyrus Boreale.

Yang could tell a lot about a person by the way they fought. Weiss and Ruby shared a poetic gracefulness, ruthlessly calculating and whimsically chaotic, respectively. Blake was lithe and wiry like a wildcat and struck like one. Pyrrha danced across an arena like a flower pedal caught in a soft wind, no surprises there. Ren was a springy opponent that dealt best with the "death by a thousand cuts" strategy. Jaune had an uncanny knack for sword and board when he figured out how his ancestral weaponry threw his balance, at least. Yang didn't hold it against him, older model weapons like Croeca Mors were designed to be wielded by fully grown soldiers, not amateur students in their late teens, even at the peak of physical condition. Yang was amazed Jaune could carry them without needing to rest every few minutes. And Nora…was about what Yang expected, bubbly and bombastic. Literally. The girl wielded a _grenade launcher_ that morphed into an exploding _sledgehammer_ , for crying out loud!

But Ty? Ty was something else. Sly. Nimble. Calculating. He didn't _move_ like a Huntsman—not one that Yang had ever seen, even in Goodwitch's Engagement Etiquette and Structure advanced class. Pyrrha had said once that Ty moved like an apex predator, carefully out of the reach of his prey, studying its movements for the perfect angle to strike, but Yang felt like there was something more to it than that. There was an almost gunslinger like swagger to Ty. The way his eyes swept over a room as he entered was like he was identifying every possible combatant and every obstacle that could incumbent him or threaten his well-being, and how he could use it to his advantage. Every inch of space was measured, every exit clocked.

Ty didn't ready for a fight. He strategized a war.

That line of thought had crossed Yang's mind once or twice earlier today. And she wasn't at all surprised when the buzzer for the match went off before either of their Auras dipped into the yellow index. Yang gaped in shock when Goodwitch had declared their fight a "decided draw," whatever that meant. Yang's reaction did not have to do with being disappointed because she had not won. She was sure she had _lost_. Ty had Yang for every dodge and parry from hit one to the buzzer. Yang could say she got a few hits in, but they were on account of luck and steady sacrifice. The only time Ty's guard dropped was when during the fleeting moments he needed to extend or retract the haft of his battle ax, or when he fueled his Aura into a devastating downward slam or a double roundhouse sweep that Yang _still_ felt through her Aura.

Like any of Ty's techniques, though, Yang managed to pick her way around it. The extended handle meant Ty had a more significant center of gravity and Yang used that to her advantage, getting in close when he was about to swing and darting back when Ty collapsed the ax down to its standard size. On and on the game went until the buzzer, and both of them glared at Professor Goodwitch in shock. Too exhausted to retain proper student-and-instructor reverence.

Yang tipped her head back into the stream of water to rinse the thick lather from her hair after working the foam through to her scalp, combing her locks with her fingers as the hot water cascaded comfortably down her back. Yang sighed as she watched the foamy suds circle the drain. Yang didn't like being this expedient with her hygiene. Usually, Yang would let her hair soak under the stream while she scrubbed herself down. Despite how rushed her process was at the moment, Yang was content with just getting the sticky, oily feeling of sweat out of her hair and off her skin.

"For a while at least," she mused to herself. Yang imagined she would be bathing again tonight if she and Ty were going on a stroll along the waterfront.

Maybe she should wear her swimsuit? No, that was a bad idea. Beacon's stretch of the Vale River probably wasn't dragged by debris and clear of predators like more frequented areas of waterfront. Yang made a mental note that, next time she and Ty went on a date, they would go to a proper beach, one with volleyball and a big delicious watermelon to carve up and eat. If tonight warranted a second date, that was.

Yang thrust her lip out at the thought. It wasn't that ambiguous, was it? Going on a date tonight, would it be any different than any of the other times she and Ty hung out? Granted, it was a given that there would probably be a significant increase in the lip-on-lip action and handholding department and an absolute decrease in literally knocking their heads together. They likely wouldn't broach the subject of the latest issue of Black Guns or the cover story of Modern Mercenary and inspect the newest adjustment either of them made to their combat gear.

But they talked about normal things, right? Grades and tests. Which professors they liked and which ones drew their ire and who got begrudged respect. What they enjoyed doing when they weren't training or tuning their weapons or studying. Yang recalled asking and being asked, but the results eluded her. She concluded it was because it had been the casual conversation between classmates and friends that saw each other on a now-and-then basis, not two people dedicatedly attenuating to each other.

 _Suppose that's gonna change tonight,_ Yang thought with a grin, grabbing for the rack of towels as she stepped out of the shower. The bathroom door crept open, and Yang watched Weiss quickly pass through the portal. She was still in her flannel nightwear, snowy white hair down in tangled disarray and pushed over her shoulders, and a ceramic mug of a cheery snow leopard hung in her hands.

"Hi, Weiss," Yang said softly with a quick grin. "Making more tea?"

"Hmhm, rinsing my mug while the water boils," Weiss mumbled and set the mug on the counter.

Poor girl, Yang frowned. The bedridden appearance wasn't suited to the Weiss' proud persona. The snowy heiress had taken ill a few days ago, the change in altitude and germ environment had gotten the better of Weiss, and she had come down with a sinus infection. Weiss lost her usual exuberance and kept almost exclusively in the room and bed, constrained to a diet of homemade soup and herbal teas alongside an antihistamine Beacon's doctor prescribed.

Yang moved from drying her body to drying her hair as she watched her teammate run the water in the sink. "Feeling any better?"

"Some. I've got a sense of smell again, and my head doesn't feel like its trying to rip my skull open."

"Well any progress is good progress," Yang smiled. She rung her fingers through hair a moment and looked back to see Weiss hand her a brush. "Thanks."

"Mhmm," Weiss nodded. "Getting ready for your date with Ty?"

Yang's responding grunt rolled into an embarrassed laugh. "Heard about it already, did you?"

"Word travels fast." Weiss shrugged and put her mug under the water to fill. "I'm happy for you. Ty's a lucky guy."

"I feel like I'm a luckier girl." Yang wrapped the towel around her chest and leaned against the bathroom wall. "It's funny, you know? Of all the ways I'd imagine my first big crush on a guy, this wasn't how I expected it to turn out."

"I know what you mean," Weiss nodded, dumping her mug out and set it back on the counter. "My first real affection for a boy was a rocky experience."

Yang lifted her brows. "Really? You?"

"It was more immaturity and naiveté than it was _ego_ ," Weiss playfully barbed. "When I had my first crush, I was almost five, and he was nine. My mother had been hosting a social of sorts, and an executive from a security firm we contracted brought his son along," Weiss giggled and touched her cheek. "I don't remember what happened completely. All I recall is my mother holding my hand as we introduced ourselves, and he and I made eye contact for the first time, and I fell absolutely in love with his eyes."

Yang caught her laugh before it bolted up her throat. "His eyes? Really?"

"Mhmm," Weiss continued. "They were this warm cognac color. Flecked with little golden shards. They caught the sunlight and swept my breath away." If she wasn't covering her face, Yang could swear a little more color had come to Weiss' features. Was she _blushing_? "I was a well of confused misery, anxious, flushed so red my mother feared I would faint, but I couldn't bear to be too far from him. I was too young to understand what I was feeling, and I was just absolutely cruel to him every time we interacted thereafter. It wasn't until years later that I was able to apologize."

"I take it that it worked out?" Yang grinned.

Weiss gave a small laugh, and her expression turned almost wistful. "Oh, yes, we're. . ." Weiss tilted her head and sniffed, "very close. He's a soldier now, of a sort. He and his unit are back in Mantle, doing security work for an Atlas project. It keeps him busy, far, far away from danger."

"And culls his heartbreaker eyes from wooing unsuspecting women?"

Weiss burst out into laughter that progressed into a hoarse cough, and the white heiress rubbed feverishly at her nose. "Oh, gods, don't make me laugh."

Yang grimaced a smile. "Sorry."

"It's fine, ahem." Weiss waved her hand several times and cleared her throat. "But yes. He keeps a firm handle on his contact with the fairer sex."

Yang smiled and shook her head. "Thanks for sharing."

Yang set the brush back on the count and raked her fingers through her hair again, and let an irritated huff. It was still a bit damp for her liking. In the end, she would have to air dry it.

"And you know it's going to get all frizzy," Yang muttered to herself, pushing back the locks on her temples with her nails.

"Hmm?" Weiss turned her head to look at Yang. "I didn't catch that."

"Nothing. "I'll let you get back to your brewing," Yang said, crossing the floor and opened the door to leave.

Weiss gave her a little wave and Yang made a beeline for her dresser. Her lip thrust out as she wrenched open one of the drawers and she tapped her foot in thought. Impromptu first dates weren't her specialty, and she did not want to go out in something that would make her look like she didn't put any thought into it. But Yang didn't want to put too much thought into it.

A long sleeved, partially sequenced orange top caught her eye, and she held the article up at arm's length with a cocked brow. A wry grin spread itself on her features and minutes later Yang was checking herself in Weiss' floor to frame mirror she had installed on the dorm's door.

It was a simple outfit. The sequence shirt with fitted baby blue jeans and tall brown boots Yang had gotten on her and Ruby's most recent trip to the city.

"There," the blonde brawler said with a nod. "Casual, but flirty. Not bad, Xiao Long."

Yang spared a last glance at herself in her vanity. Satisfied she yanked open the door and made for the far end of the dorms.

Yang felt like such a schoolgirl when she caught Ty seated outside of Team BRSS' room, changed out of his school uniform into a blue polo and a pair of khakis. He was as casual as could be, a leg bent and the corresponding arm resting on the up reaching knee. She smirked at the contemplative crease of his lips as he stared at the wall ahead as sunlight spilled across his otherwise blank expression.

" _Yang_ ing out for me?" Yang asked once she reached him, propping a hand on her hip. Ty's responding snort was redoubled by Ruby shouting "Booooo!" from down the hall.

"Sonny and V are getting ready for bed," he said and jerked his thumb at the door. "Figured I do the polite thing and excuse myself while they changed."

"Awful gentlemanly of you."

"I _Ty_ my best," he grinned at her.

 _"Booooo!"_ Ruby hollered again, joined now by Blake, with their hands cupped over their mouths, so their voices were both amplified and carried further.

"Think we should skedaddle before the peanut gallery gets too salty," Ty said as he stood and cast a pointed Kubrickian glare Ruby's way. "Or roasted."

The petite redhead laughed nervously, touching the tips of her fingers together repeatedly and smiling apologetically. Ty smirked and straightened out his pants, clearing the creases and dirt of the from them in a few quick motions before bending at the waist to snatch up a wicker basket that hidden itself on his other side. Yang lifted her brows.

"Is that…?"

Ty looked back at her and blinked a few times. "A picnic basket, yeah. I thought we could get an early dinner while we're out," he reasoned. "Nothing special a few sandwiches, some dried fruit, a bit of the broccoli salad V had left in the fridge."

Yang grunted softly, and Ty gave her a look. "Just how bored were you while I was in class?"

"Enough to make twelve ham and turkey sandwiches to split between us," Ty responded, wrapping his hand around hers as they started down the hallway.

Yang blew a raspberry. "That gonna be enough?"

"Six for you, six for me," Ty shrugged. "I mean, sounds fair."

"You think I eat that much?" Yang lifted her brows and winced at Ty's cornered frown. "I mean, you think I'll _only_ eat that much?"

"They're big sandwiches."

 **...**

It took a good twenty or so minutes to get from the Dorms and off of campus proper. Ty knew it was well worth it, watching the look of awe on Yang's face as she looked out across Lake Beacon. The blazing orange sun withered past the distant Forest of Forever Fall, across the lapping blue waters, painting the sky in a glorious array of warm colors and bathed the horizon in a spectacular glow.

"My gods, Ty," the blonde brawler muttered. "I don't think I've ever seen anything this beautiful."

Ty chuckled victoriously. "I've meant to drag a bench or a table or something up here, make it a little cozier," he said, taking Yang's hand and going further along the beach. It didn't take long for his date to realize Ty had intentionally undersold the "secluded stretch of beach" prospect. It turned out to be a wholly unpopulated tract of land at least ten miles long that had never undergone development. For one reason or another.

Ty set the basket with their picnic fixings on a worn down grassy patch under the comfortable shade of a vast swamp birch and pulled out a checkered blanket. He offered one end to Yang, and the two of them opened it up and spread it over the grass for a little cover from the elements.

Ty knelt down and unloaded the basket, laying out an impressive array of last-minute fixings. Stacks of sandwiches, Tupperware of salads, and some of those weird fruit rolls Sango made when she was between classes. Ty glanced back into the basket to make sure he grabbed everything. An amber glint against one side of the basket made him go white. Ty spared a quick look over his shoulder as Yang eagerly rubbed her hands and wet her lips at the prospecting meal in front of her. But when Ty set a crystal scotch glass on the ground away from him, Yang snapped her gaze on him.

"Something wrong?"

"I might have forgotten to mention, but I packed in a bottle of Ferrotter I've been saving."

Yang blink at him with an expression Ty didn't know how to read. "You have _hard liquor_? At _Beacon_?"

"My parents gave it to me before the flight from the Coast," Ty smiled sheepishly and shrugged. Yang raised a brow. "Well, I wasn't going to throw it out. D'you have any idea how much Vacuot whiskey goes sells? I figured I'd save it for a special occasion."

Yang crossed her arms and favored one leg, making her hip thrust out to one side. "Like when you managed to lure an unsuspecting girl out to an unpopulated cliff side to have your way with her?"

"Or when I take a girl I like out on my first date," Ty said after buzzing his lips. He waved a hand at Yang dismissively. "But hey. If you don't want any, I can drink it myself."

Yang dropped to the ground with her legs folded and stared daggers at Ty's soul. "Ty, you'd better pour me a glass if you don't want me walking off right now."

Ty snorted at the bright flash in Yang's lilac eyes and thought back on Yang's boasting tales of bar fights and club brawls and asked himself why he panicked in the first place. Ty grabbed the other glass from the basket and sent it Yang's way with a flick of his wrist. She squealed giddily and waved her bowed legs as Ty retrieved the bottle of malted whiskey from the basket alongside a small Scroll speaker accessory about the size of his palm.

Yang snorted a laugh. "Little music while we dine?"

Ty rolled his eyes, almost seeing the quotes around the last word, but didn't respond. He dropped the slate-colored device on the blanket when he flipped it on. As Ty sat back down, he started a playlist on his Scroll labeled "Chasing The Sunsets" and hit play. A moody, bluesy strumming of guitar preceded the smooth tones of a man crooning about a working woman of dubious fidelity and her committed man's frustration with her.

"Gordon Lightfoot?" His date bit into another of her sandwiches and regarded him with an intrigued brow. Ty nodded, chewing through a forkful of broccoli salad that he determined to be decidedly more broccoli than salad. He made a mental note to re-instruct Sango on the recipe.

"Didn't peg you the folk music type, Ty."

Ty poured a glass of Ferriter for himself before firing back with, "I might be a metalhead, but I've got an appreciation for softer listening, blondie."

"Before or after your ears start to bleed?"

"You sure you want some of this?" Ty countered immediately, indicatively waggled the bottle at of whiskey at his date for good measure.

"That's a low blow, Tyrus," Yang giggled and held her glass up for him to fill and Yang chowed down two of her stack of sandwiches between careful gulps of the oily amber fluid.

Ty observed the ritual while taking steady pulls of the smooth liquor after clearing his cut of the food. "I'm surprised you're not taking these shot per shot."

"Pfffft, yeah right," Yang said with a mouthful of ham sandwich packed against her cheek. "Stuff like this needs to be savored."

Ty nodded with enthused amusement. A thin rivulet of mustard trailed down the corner of her mouth. Ty snerked.

"What?"

"You got some cast-off, right there." Ty indicated to his lip with a finger. He fought the smirk tugging at his mouth when Yang blushed slightly when she went to wipe the trail away with her thumb and defied the wicked urge to grin when Yang sucked the topping off its tip. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

"Do that one more time, but slowly," Yang's head cocked to an angle, and she looked at him puzzled. "And trail your tongue along the nail."

Yang's brows shot to her hairline. Her face went scarlet, and she fell over, clutching her sides as she howled with laughter.

The rest of the date went by smoothly.

At least it did once Yang had caught her breath.

They kept the topics light while they finished their meal, staying away from anything too personal or too discussion-worthy. They compared their favorite movies and discovered a similar taste in music; both of them sourced heavy metal and hard rock as their preferred genres. Yang had more eclectic tastes that encompassed pop, punk, rap, and hip-hop, expectantly, and—bizarrely enough—house music, to which the blonde brawler attributed to her years scouring the club scene. A notion that Ty found hilarious and left Yang flustered—though the image that popped into Ty's head of Yang in a foil mini skirt and tight clothing did a little more than rising a laugh out of him. He chose not to bring that up.

As the meal wore down, Ty eventually asked her about growing up on Patch and what going to Signal was like, having not gone to combat school himself.

"It was alright. Signal was a great place to come into my element and figure out what I wanted to be as a Huntress. Plus my dad and my uncle are great instructors," she said. "They made getting a date for four years absolute hell, though."

Ty snorted and raised a brow. "Really?"

Yang grinned pointedly. "Oh yeah. Don't get me wrong—Signal's plenty big, but gossip is the lifeblood of a student body."

"Still, four years?"

"Dad and Uncle Qrow were all over every poor guy that so much as winked at me."

"Yikes." Ty grimaced.

"Is there a girl-form of being cockblocked?"

Ty wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Yes, but if I said it you'd probably slap me."

"Ahah!" Yang bellowed. "It wouldn't happen to be a something regarding 'country matters' would it?"

Ty scratched the corner of his mouth and feigned absentia. "Possibly."

Yang laughed again. "Such the gentleman."

"Hey, I'm one for glib, but there is a line that shouldn't be crossed when in the presence of your crush."

"Considering your crush, I'd say you're pretty safe," Yang winked at him, and Ty felt his face heat up. "So how about you? What was your training like? Your parents apprenticed you, right?"

Ty nodded and poured himself another drink. "Whole family, really. Sure there was Mom and Dad through most of it. They covered the basics, taught me how to read and write, how to fight, how to shoot, how to track Grimm, strategize and implement tactics. My siblings joined in once I got a handle on my abilities. Farkas taught me how to make gunpowder, mend my weapons and reload cartridges. Sable and Oren helped me build my armor and get it field tested, Sil tutored me through the door stopper huge books on every documented Grimm in existence, Arty showed me how to survive in the wilderness, and Grau and Bruin coached me through fighting as a team."

Ty worked through a watered-down version of his years of tutelage his family had instructed him, but he covered the basics. "I was being taught how to fight since I was four, but my _actual_ training didn't start until I was eight. My parents wanted me to enjoy being a kid and be able to stand my ground."

Yang gave him a perplexed look. "At _four_?"

Ty shrugged. "I was an active kid."

When he wasn't confined to study, he traveled all of Sovereign Boreale to train; from sea-washed coastland to the peaks of the Grey Mountains, fighting faceless creatures in fog swept ruins and twisted trees of the Black Woods. When he was old enough to design and build his own weapons, his uncles took him out stalking marauding bandits through the outskirts of the major cities and invaded farmlands, and patrolling the coastal waters for smugglers, pirates, and the occasional chapter of White Fang.

"But really, the dearth of my training was spent getting my teeth kicked in by my parents and siblings, again and again, and again."

Yang chortled. "Sounds familiar."

"Yeah, I bet," Ty laughed and continued. "It went on more or less like we did. Up until I whooped them all without taking so much as a scratch."

"Nice."

"Topping it all off, once I mastered one-on-one duels, I took them all on in a group."

Yang smiled pointedly and raised a brow. "How was that?"

"Oh, it was great! Nothing like getting swarmed on all sides by people twice your size four hours a day for five days straight," Ty slapped his thigh and smiled mirthlessly. "Good times!"

Yang giggled at the display. "At least you kept a positive outlook on it. Your family doesn't screw around, does it?"

"Yeah. But my family, my parents especially, have their reasons." Ty shook his head and sighed. "Being a Hunter is dangerous work; no room for softness when you're facing down what lurks on the Coast. I get why they didn't pull their punches."

"You just wish they didn't throw so many punches," Yang concluded teasingly. Ty nodded and took another swig from his glass. "That what brought you to being an oplo-whatever? Tackling your folks?"

"You mean an oplomancer?" Ty grinned at Yang's flippant wave of her hand. "I guess it had some part to do with it. I think it was that I didn't feel like I could tie myself to one specific weapon or style. I figure if my adversaries vary in technique, why shouldn't I?"

"A fair argument. Says something about your commitment abilities."

Ty rolled his eyes at the playful barb.

Conversation lulled after that, and the duo was content with finishing their meal and watching the sun's slow descent along the skyline, their hands cross over each other. Ty didn't mind the extended silences. He was just happy to be here with Yang. Not for the first time tonight, Ty reminded himself that, friends or no, this was only a first date; he did not—and would not—expect too much from it.

The prior session of he and Yang giving each other tonsil inspections with their tongues notwithstanding. A wry grin crept up his cheeks, and Yang did not fail to notice it.

"What are you thinking?"

Ty blinked and whipped up something quick. "I thought we still need to have that race."

Yang's ears perked up, and she sat a little straighter. "Oh, hell yeah we do!"

Ty was referring to a head-to-head drag out and circuit against Yang's yellow racing bike, Bumblebee, and Ty's own plum crazy muscle car, Little Queen.

The mutual dedication to their respective motor vehicles had cropped up during one of their sparring sessions about two-and-a-half weeks into the semester. Ty had brought up that Yang had seemed distracted during her most recent winning bout, and the blonde brawler had answered she was thinking about her bike. Yang had installed a new braking system recently, but she couldn't get above sixty because she having trouble with the gear shift and couldn't figure out why. Immediately an in-depth discussion of transmission mechanics exploded into being; installation method, condition, manufacturer, et al.

Ty named off a list of likely issues before sticking with too much play with the clutch cables but definitely advised getting a mechanic or a specialist to look at it. The young Hunter had reiterated that his knowledge was rooted in classic muscle cars and didn't have much experience with motorcycles. Yang was enraptured regardless and fired off salvo after salvo of questions regarding Ty's mechanical insight over the next few days, learning that Ty and his father and grandfather had spent long hours of his early- and mid-teens restoring old large body cars from decades past. At least when they were finished with training.

"Speaking of which," Yang said, "how is work on Little Queen?"

"Really good, actually," Ty said. "Gotta get the chrome buffed a little should see pavement before Fall."

"I'd love to pop by and help you out with it, I wish we talked shop a little more."

"Not exactly something that crops up in casual conversation," Ty stated before taking on a persona of the girl across from him. "'Oh, by the way, I drive a crazy fast crotch rocket that is based on the light-cycles from Tron and like to go street racing after dark. Is that okay?'"

Yang nearly spat out her mouthful of whiskey at the performance, and Ty let out a roll of laughter himself. "Gah! Oh, Monty Oum in heaven. Please tell me I don't sound like that!"

"Mmmmmm...not quite," Ty said, the assurance lost in his tight grin.

After they had finished packing, Ty opted for a walk along the beach, Yang following beside him with her hand wrapped around his. They talked more and more, Ty lazily swinging the basket in the air as they went. They came to a high crest over a hill that dropped into a cliff and spent the last few minutes of the twilight slowly dancing to an old love song coming off the radio as the sun dipped out of sight. Hand in hand, Ty and Yang made their way back to the dorms under the twinkling starlight, managing to clear the entrance just before curfew. Yang rested her head on Ty's shoulder and humming some song Ty wasn't familiar with as they walked the rest of the way to Team RWBY's room.

"We're here."

Ty smirked at Yang's dejected tone. "Yeah, we are."

She hugged Ty's arm tighter. "I don' wanna go."

"I know, sweetie," Ty chuckled, and patted the blonde bombshell's head, "but we've got a big day tomorrow and I need you rested."

"Mph!" Yang grunted in protest but managed to untwine herself from Ty's arm. She gave a broad yawn reaching for the doorknob. Ty seized her wrist suddenly and tugged her against him, his arms wrapped around Yang's shoulders, and he slanted his lips over hers. It wasn't as vigorous as their previous session, but Ty focused the last of his energy on making this kiss a passionate one. Yang kissed him back almost immediately, her hands encircling Ty's neck to bring him closer to her. They stayed in the hall like that for a long, sobering moment, before they broke apart—Yang stepping back and leaning her frame against the door with a barely contained smile on her lips.

Ty broke the silence. "See you in class tomorrow."

Yang only nodded and cracked the door open. "G'night."

"Good night…" Ty returned. He couldn't help the longing that tugged at his heart when the door made a soft this as it closed and he let out a long sigh before turning to head to bed himself.

The telltale sound of a door popping open just slightly made Ty halt. Yang's voice rang in the quiet shadows.

"Hey, Ty?"

The young Hunter turned on his heel. "Yeah?"

"Best date ever."

Ty raised an eyebrow. "Ever?"

" _Everrrrrrr_ ," Yang whispered as the door clicked shut.

Ty jumped up and pumped his fist in the air, making his way back to Team BRSS' room humming _Gonna Fly Now_ under his breath.

* * *

 ** _A/n: Cookie points to anyone that can figure out the correlation of 'Little Queen' and muscle cars. Also, I'm officially looking for a beta reader for the upcoming chapters; obviously a posting that carries spoiler connotations, but I'm curious. PM me if you're interested. Yes_**


	6. Chapter 6: So Diets Are Weird

**A/N: Some dialogue pad ahead. Serious question, though: Has there never actually been a scene showing where the students at Beacon physically get their food? The one drag on putting this out was scouring the forums about where all that food comes from in all three-ish episodes the cafeteria appears. "So fuck it," says I. "It's a school, innit? Schools have kitchens students get their food. Beacon has a kitchen. Boom."**

 **Fight me.**

 **I've decided not to log this as a crossover _for the moment_. The way FFN categorizes Fics would give too much of what I have planned away. And I can't be doing that, can I? I'll be sprinkling hints here and there, starting with little preambles like the one below.**

 **I'm still on the lookout for beta readers—drop me a PM if you're interested!**

* * *

 _"A thick, refreshing concoction drunk by the Hunter teams at Beacon._

 _It's c_ _omposed of the Boreale Coast's iconic flora, dehydrated and pummeled into a fine powder, and mixed with either milk or water_ _and c_ _ompares equally to various protein and fitness shake formulas across Remnant._ _The properties of lumenfleurs provide a moderate restorative and regenerative effect in addition to their nutritional surge. Both qualities get help in part by the heightened metabolic rate Hunters develop during their training."  
_ **— Lumenfleur Herbal Shake**

* * *

 **Chapter 3  
So Diets Are Weird**

Ty was awake precisely ninety minutes before he had set his alarm to go off. Hours still before the first classes started, and he was wide awake, in Team BRSS' room, staring at the clock on his Scroll.

 _A solid start to a great day._ He thought.

With little reason to stay in bed any longer, Ty rolled to his feet and popped open his dresser, fished out a pair of gym shorts and a hoodie, and left the room quietly to begin his morning workout.

Beacon didn't have much of a parade grounds—it was a school for combat and training, not general education. It was still too early for the gym, or the sparring theater would be open, and Ty did not entertain the thought of taking off into the instructors' dorms to wake Goodwitch at this ungodly hour. If the young Hunter was honest with himself, the fancy machinery and cushioned floor didn't do anything to get his blood moving like being in the open air. So Ty made do with the outdoor commons and got to his routine after settling in a level stretch of grass and found himself in the smattering company of a few other early birds. They offered brief greetings and continued into their routines while Ty found a place to set up for himself.

Ty didn't count his exercise program as complicated, it was intensive to a respectable level, but it didn't leave him breathless and exhausted for the rest of the day. It followed a simple series of steps separated by short breaks.

First on the docket eights sets of ten push-ups, three-minute break, one minute plank. Then three sets of twenty sit-ups, two-minute plank, and thirty-second break. After that were two sets of twelve squats, single leg and split, followed by a fifteen burpees, four-minute spider plank, thirty Atlesian twists, and break again. The routine finished off with three hundred crunches and bicycle kicks, more Atlassian Twists, and a twenty-mile run. If Ty was in a hurry, he could do all of it in thirty minutes.

Given the early hour, the young Hunter took a leisurely pace and was on his run after twenty minutes by his guess. His route took him on a tour of the school grounds that ended at the port overlooking Beacon Bay and looped back around until he was back in the dorms. Ty opted for a quick tour de stade in the amphitheater before starting his way to the port on the far side of campus, it gave the young Hunter some more time to get his heart rate up. Ty slowed to a jog and then to a fast walk as he got closer to his dormitory building, flipping his hood down and combing his fingers through his sweat streaked hair. His strides closed length as Ty's breath caught up with him and his heartbeat slowed to normalcy. Ty was steady as a surgeon's hand when he was back on his room's level.

The door to the room opened silently and whispered shut with only the softest of clicks marking its disturbance. Immediately Ty made for the bathroom shared between the team, taking a uniform for the day out from the closet as he went. Like the dorm room, it was homey, painted with a soothing shade of red and furnished with dark stained oak cabinetry. The counter only allowed room for one sink, carefully circled by toiletries belonging to the team's members on a personal note. Several more sensitive items of hygiene—belonging to the group's female members—were clandestinely stored in the drawers that flanked the cabinet housing the cleaning supplies and the sink's pipe works.

No makeup kits, however, Ty breathed blessedly. Another upside to the vanities nested in the corners of the dorm room. They kept the horrifying number of glosses, eyeshadow, lip balms, mascara and powders from overwhelming the counter space. That was to say, it kept _Vera's_ makeup accessories from spilling off the counter. Ty chuckled under his breath. Team Brass' fearless leader was most definitely the biggest culprit in that regard and appropriately lived up to her fashionista persona.

Ty pulled open the frosted glass door of the shower and yanked the handle to the hot stream, using the tips of his fingers to gauge the temperature as the water heated up. Ty spared a glance at his dull reflection in the glass and rubbed the palm of his other hand over the prickly beginnings of stubble on his jaw. He'd have to shave in a few days. The heat of the water began to sting his palm and Ty reached over to turn the handle back a way. Once the temperature was more agreeable, Ty stepped into the hot stream. As the heated waters soaked his hair and raced down his body, Ty set his movements on autopilot and lost himself in his thoughts while he washed down. The shower stall was as right a place as any to think. He had a few things on his mind.

Something other than Yang—because of course, he would be thinking about the boisterous bombshell that had stampeded her way out of his dreams and into his arms. They just had their—messy and incredibly hot—first kiss and went on their first date not seven hours ago! Ty was over the moon and across the universe happy. He wasn't quite euphoric, but the blue-haired boy was fast approaching it. While Ty kept a mental note that he would have to think up ideas for a second date, his recent upgrade in the relationship was on the back burner for the moment while he mentally ticked through his class schedule for the day.

First up would be Field Medicine with Peach, today marked when the Professor would begin their First Aid certification, and Ty vaguely recalled something about medical sterilization techniques being part of the lesson plan, with some other thing that eluded him. Ty shook his head, he would be ready for it. Peach was an uppity sort, but competence was not something she was lacking.

Following that would be Team Tactics with Professor Coltrane. Nothing pops to mind thinking on that, probably more trust-building exercises in The Maze. Maybe even a once around the obstacle course and a speech or two about camaraderie before an assigned reading.

Coltrane was nothing if not consistent.

At around noon Ty and Veera would meet up with Deac and Sonny in the Wellness Center for their daily workout before hitting the showers and heading to lunch. What day was it? Legs and hips? Ty made a mental note to check his calendar for the muscle group schedule.

Ty furrowed his brow. He felt like he forgot something. What was Ty forgetting? It was right in front of him, but he couldn't put the pang of anxiety to rest. Was he worried about his classes? Ty didn't think so. The one class Ty was at all nervous about was Oobleck's History of Modern Remnant. There was an oral report on their family lineages due for presentation today, and Ty was unsure of how he was going to present an exact _and_ concise summation of his family history. Not a small or inordinate task since Ty was dealing with a legacy that stretches back two thousand years. Ty wasn't anxious about the speech though—he was worried about Oobleck's torrent of questions immediately after Ty had wrapped up his report. And how many centuries old skeletons the inquisitive professor would try to pry out of the Boreale family closet. But Ty was ready for it. The young Hunter figured he had his bases covered at least. He hoped he did.

So what was he so uppity about?

"This is going to go _so_ well," Ty chided himself with a deprecated smirk.

Ty stepped out of the bathroom dried and groomed for the day. Albeit not dressed for it.

With naught but a towel wrapped around his waist Ty quietly moved to the team's shared closet and pulled out one of several cleaned and tailored uniforms. Ty was midway through putting the Windsor together when the text received chime went off on his Scroll, and the young Hunter sped through a list of likely senders in the few seconds it took him to pick the device from his dresser.

He scoffed at the sight of the portrait of Yang Xiao Long with her big stupid grin looking back at him, the words 'new message' in small blocky caps to the immediate right of it.

Ty tapped the bubble, and Yang's text appeared on the screen.

 _Hey, good lookin'. You awake yet?_

Ty was fast with a reply. _A while ago. You?_

 _About twenty minutes ago, yeah. Got hungry._

 _Wanna meet for breakfast?_

 _Now how did I know you were going to ask?_

 _Is it that "female intuition" I keep hearing about?_

 _Lol. Totally. I'll be waiting in the hall._

 _You bet._

Ty set his Scroll to sleep again and tucked it into his pocket before finishing his tie and slinging his arms into his jacket. He was just closing the door when Veera lifted her head from her pillow. Team Brass' fashionable captain stared curiously from the adorable ball she had curled into to located what had roused her from her sleep. Her lips dry and smacking together comically Veera's sleepy features drew up at the sight of Ty at the door.

"Christ Ty, all ready at this hour?"

Ty coughed a laugh. "Yeah woke up early. Went for a run."

Veera made an understanding noise at the back of her throat. "Going to breakfast?"

"Mhmm, Yang's meeting me."

Slowly, a tried grin crossed Veera's lips. She just nodded and itched her head. "It's okay. Go do you."

"Now why the hell would I wanna do that?" Ty threw over his shoulder and barely caught Veera flipping him off when she rolled over to go back to sleep.

It didn't take Ty long to get to the end of the dorms where Teams RWBY and JNPR neighbored. He found Yang sleepily leaned against the door to her team's room, tapping her ankles together as she waited. She must have just stepped out, Ty realized, seeing as her hair was still a bit dark and damp from showering and her uniform was hastily thrown on. She was adorable.

"Hey there, pretty woman."

The blonde brawler snapped her attention Ty's direction to the sound of his voice.

"Hey!" Yang's face lit up like a Wintervale tree and came in close and wrapped her arms around Ty. Ty laughed and hugged her back.

"Good morning."

Yang stepped back and gave Ty a broad smile. "You sleep well?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Mhmm," Yang said. Her eyes turned to narrow slots, and her grin took a wry edge. "You really know how to _take me out_."

Ty snorted. "It's a bit early, pungeon master."

Yang giggled and flashed her tongue at him. "Killjoy."

Ty rolled his eyes. "Come on. Let's go get a table before the food gets cold."

"I second that notion," Yang roped one arm around Ty's waist, and Ty left his on Yang's shoulders. "I'm hankering for bagels and cereal. What are you gonna get?"

Ty hummed as he thought. "Thought I'd keep it simple, get a few pastries, some protein milk and coffee," his head perked up, the scent of cooked flank, steaming pepper, and melted cheese ghosted his thoughts. "Maybe get my hands on a cheese-steak omelet and a stack of waffles."

"Maybe," Yang echoed with a giggle.

"What? I'm a growing boy."

Yang hummed pleasantly and hugged Ty closer.

There was never a lack of delicious food at Beacon Academy in Ty's mind. The plethora of cooks running the kitchen earned their places and sterling reputation. Every meal was well organized, balanced, and measured for feeding the snarling pits that sat in the literal bellies of the student body. Three times a day. Day in and day out. And the food was always prepared to perfection—with plenty of variety.

"But the _food_ , Yang," Ty handed a tray to his blonde companion.

"How is it possible that everything they make every day is _always_ knockout good?"

"The way you say it, it's like Beacon's kitchen staff are supernatural," Yang chuckled and made whirring noises like old cheap horror movies. Ty rolled his eyes. His companion rewarded him with a playful nudge. "I, personally, won't complain about free food."

"Whoa!" Ty reeled. "Hey, I am _far_ and away from complaining—I will never complain about anything that's put in front of me."

"Yeah. I hadn't noticed," Yang remarked, pointedly glancing her eyes from Ty's face to his breakfast tray. Currently, the young Hunter was spreading three flavors of jam on four types of toasted bread to pair along with a fruit bowl, a heaping of bacon, and a tower of Mantle-style waffles with thick, steaming maple syrup poured over.

"What? I never refuse free food. _Free_ is my favorite kind of _anything_."

Yang lifted a brow. "And your second favorite?"

"Hot," Ty winked at her. "Present company included."

Yang stumbled into a burst of laughter, grabbing Ty's sleeve for support. Ty had no idea he had cashed in his luck as good as he had when he came to Beacon, the headache of enrolling into Vale's academic community was well worth it.

After Yang had settled down some, they kept on their way down the food line. Ty gave a smug grin when Yang lit up with a giddy noise, pulling out several cinnamon rolls to add to her platter. "What happened to bagels and cereal?"

Yang blew a raspberry at him. "Cinnamon rolls, Ty. I didn't know there'd be _cinnamon rolls_."

Ty's smile broadened, and he plopped a serving of cheesy potatoes on his plate, with a quartet of fried egg whites and a bowl of a sweet-smelling soup that caught his eye. "Finished?"

"Yeah. I'd say so," Yang beamed at her tightly packed plate. "To the dining hall?"

Ty thrust his arm forward, "To the dining hall!"

Beacon's dining hall fit well into the rest of the school's quasi-gothic architecture: large and formal, running the length of the building. The design reminded Ty of the cloistered cathedrals back home in Boreale. Complete with an unreasonably tall vaulted ceiling and braced glass windows. Four long sets of tables stretched almost end to end across the hall's length, with benches on either side and a comfortable walk space between. A few other early birds in the building sitting here and there, by themselves or with a teammate or two.

"Good to see we're not the only ones with bad sleep cycles," Yang observed.

"Yeah, I don't know why but there's just something _creepy_ about being in a building this big by ourselves."

Yang shivered and rolled her shoulders. "Yeah. No arguments here."

The pair shrugged at each other and trotted to Team RWBY's regular table. Yang parked herself on the bench facing away from the tall windows and Ty took his seat across from her. The young Hunter went after his stack of waffles while Yang started at her cinnamon rolls. Ty was mid-bite when he jerked in his seat.

"Crap, I almost forgot!"

"What?"

Ty reached under him and produced a tall, clear, fluted cup topped with a black lid. A small wire ball rested at the bottom of the container on a small hill of a powdery gray substance.

Yang tilted her head at him. "A blender bottle?"

"Had an early morning workout, need to recover," Ty said.

Yang grimaced. "You drink protein shakes? Nasty."

Ty grabbed the pitcher of water that was laid out on the table. "Herbal remedy, sweetheart, little different."

"Different how?"

"Usually, protein shakes are made up of soy or whey, this stuff is ground dehydrated Lumenfluer bulbs," Ty explained as he unscrewed the lid of his bottle.

"That flower thing that's all over your street clothes?"

"Hey, a national icon is one for a reason," Ty said, carefully pouring water into the bottle. He stopped when the now-cloudy water reached a marked ring on the inside before he screwed the lid back on and started shaking it back and forth. The metal ring ball clattering against the plastic loudly. "And this stuff is special."

"Oh really?" Yang said dryly.

"It's loaded with twenty-four vitamins and minerals, thirty-eight grams of protein, and a shitload of antioxidants," Ty explained, matter-of-factly. "Plus all the same sort of enzymes that expand blood vessels to carry more oxygen and release somatotropin that jumpstarts lean muscle development."

"Ah huh," Yang said slowly. "So you're drinking a plant?"

"Essentially, yeah," Ty popped the cap lever off with his thumb and took a long pull of the foaming, pale gray liquid. "And it tastes _so much better_."

"Uhh, yeah. Still nasty," Yang thrust out her tongue in a yuck expression. "You might as well drink ground chalk."

Ty rolled his eyes. "Now who's the killjoy/."

Yang grinned and waved her head from side to side cheerily a few times before taking a glance under the table. "Where were you even keeping that?"

"Around," Ty shrugged.

Yang scoffed and shook her head. "You ready for Sauche's test today?"

Ty groaned. "That's today?"

"Yep. All set for it?"

Ty sneered and shrugged a shoulder. "Ready, if not quite raring. You?"

"Meh. Not sure. I hear Sauche is a stickler for essay-driven exams. Lots of 'explain the outcome of scenario X with these variables' type stuff."

"Physics is hard to write out and keep concise." Ty finished his last bit of eggs.

"It's just one of my many talents!"

"Good to know you're useful outside of a fight," Ty said dryly. Then his grin went slack. "Ah."

 _That_ was what he had forgotten.

Yang furrowed her brows. "Was it something I said?"

Ty shook his head. "No. I just…" he pressed his lips, uncertain how to phrase this. "I forgot about EES today."

Yang blinked. "Oh. Right."

"Yeah."

Yang let out a long breath, setting her elbows on the table and folding her hands together. "I mean...do you want to talk about it?"

"Should we? Is there anything we _should_ talk about?"

Yang crossed her arms and adopted a ponderous, pouting expression Ty thought was absolutely adorable. After a moment she shook her head. "No. Not that I can think of. I'm competitive, you're competitive, you like to fight me, and I have fun fighting you. We've been knocking the hell out of each other since day one and, allowing for some occasional ribbing," she sent Ty a wink, and he gave her a jeering smile back, "we're great friends. We have fun when we duke it out. Just because we're dating doesn't mean we can't have a good row in class."

Ty perked a brow. "Oh, so we're 'dating'?"

"That's my impression. Yeah." Yang shrugged.

"See, that implies we've gone on more than one date."

"Well, no," Yang leaned forward on her elbows. "But how about we make a bet."

Ty crossed his arms underneath his sternum. "Lemme hear it."

"If I win next match, we hang out in my room tonight. Watch movies, play games, shoot the shit."

Ty nodded. "Cozy. What if I win?"

"The same thing," Yang said with a broad, toothy smile, split by her tongue in the middle. "With the added caveat that we make out every ten minutes,"

Ty's eyes bulged. "Chhh-wow! I mean…That's-uh, um..."

"Incentivizing?" Yang said and popped a piece of her roll into her mouth. "You're a great kisser. What can I say?"

Ty's shoulders went slack. All he could do was gape at the girl across from him as she smiled and ate cheerfully.

"You don't have to answer now, tiger. Just let it simmer for a bit."

Ty swallowed hard. "Uh, yeah, okay."

A cozy quiet settled between Ty and Yang; merely enjoying each other's company, holding gazes every so often and laughing when one of them burst into broad smiles. The rest of Beacon's student body began filtering in after a little while, carrying plates and platters of morning fixings, chattering up a din that echoed through the building like a cathedral at the height of mass. Blake was among the first ones in, alert and ready to tackle classes but sleep still clung to the corner of her eyes. She sat down next to Yang with a quick grin and hello to Ty and started eating. Weiss and Ruby were in a few minutes later, both sporting a sluggish pace. One that vanished the moment Ruby saw Ty across from Yang and immediately zoomed over and unleashed a devastating torrent of words in at a frightening speed.

"TyomigoshIamsosososorryforyesterdayIjustwantedtosayIwassorryforputtingyououtthereandbreakingbrocodeandididntmeantoandImsohappyforyouandyanghowwasyourdatelastnightdidyouguyshaveagoodtimeandwhatdidyouguysdoandwhywasyangbacksolatehuhyoudidntdoanyhtinguntiowardand—"

"Ruby! Whoa! Hey!"

Yang wrapped a hand around her sister's mouth. Ty laughed wildly, and Weiss dropped her face into her hand. "Take a breath before you pass out on the floor, okay, kiddo?"

"Mhmph!" Ruby nodded and drew in deep through her nose, her small figure bowing outwards in the process.

Several seconds passed.

"Ruby, exhale."

A long rush of air vented from Ruby's chest, scattering ties and skirts and ruffling jackets and shirts. The pint-sized redhead relaxed her posture.

"Better?"

Ruby made a muffled affirmative sound, and Yang pulled her hand away. "Try and take things slow this time, okay?"

Ruby turned to face Ty again, closed her eyes and pressed her hands together for a moment to compose herself. "I want to say I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't read the situation right, and it put you in a place you didn't deserve. So, I'm sorry. Again."

"Apology accepted," Ty said with an appreciative nod. "And don't worry about it. Really, Ruby, you're the catalyst of Yang and I being together."

"Damn right," Yang clapped her sister on the back. "Don't beat yourself up over it, Rubes. We owe you one."

"At least you admit it." Weiss chuckled over a steaming cup of freshly mixed tea.

"It turned out for the best," Blake offered. "I'm happy for you two. Really. Congratulations."

"Aw! Thanks, Blake!" Yang threw her arms around her partner's shoulders and hugged her close.


	7. Chapter 7: So Ty's Family is OLD

**A/N: Man was this a time coming. Apologies for the orbital bombardment that's about to happen but I think I've framed it well enough. How are you guys liking these little descriptor preambles? If they're annoying or pull you out let me know in the reviews and I'll nix em quick.**

* * *

 _"Tyrus Boreale hand crafted this necklace in the later stages of his years-long Apprenticeship. Rosaries such as this are often used by opplomancers to bond with their weapons, but this one in particular is a curious case. Strange markings of a galloping stag are carved into the surface of the beads and the silver idol on the short bit of chain whisper of a hidden, unthinkable power._

 _Much of the religious elements of the Boreale State are unique even amongst the spiritualities and superstitions of Remnant._ _It is commonplace for Boreale Hunters to kneel in prayer for their fallen adversaries; wishing them safe passage into their next life, and forgiveness for bringing their end."  
_ **— Rosary of Unknown Saint**

* * *

 **Chapter 7  
So Ty's Family is _Old_**

"Like many of the nations of Remnant, a good deal of Boreale's history is left incomplete. So it is also true for the family that quietly reigns the swath of dark forests, haunted valleys, and treacherous mountains on Anima's northmost shore. As reclusive but benevolent aristocrats, the Boreale family has existed for roughly twenty-five-hundred years. But the name itself has lasted even longer, after a certain point the exhaustive ancestral records are just gone. Either destroyed by any number of wars that come with ruling a nation, lost to the natural law of entropy, or covered merely by ciphers so complicated that even the most ancient of chroniclers cannot solve them. But not so much was lost that modern historians cannot guess as to their origin.

By studying the skeletal remains of abandoned settlements like Dauberny and Thesben, scouring shadow stalked forts like Windbreaker and Ghastor, and comparing their designs and fall to entropy to the same rivers and valleys carved into the basins and plateaus the cities of Boreale occupy, an educated guess can be made. The earliest point the Boreale line could date back to was in the closing centuries of Remnant's Ice Age, ten-to-fifteen-thousand years ago, when the Stroman Glacier receded into what is now the Tahlgeuse Strait between Anima and Sanus. The mass of ice and rock's departure opened a relatively small pass into a primeval bowl, preserved for millennia, freeing the region to the curiosities of wandering hunter-gatherer tribes. The Boreales were either one such tribe or a later amalgam of them. During their settling of this portal region, what is now the city of Vigil's Gap, the Boreale met and befriended distant progenitors of the Wolfram, Kuprinov, and Donnic families and joined their conflicts with the warlike ancestors of the modern-day Tiran and Zlodneykroviny families.

Unfortunately, historians can only speculate what transpired between the years of these old conflicts of feuding tribes and the founding of the Boreale family, besides the obvious. The soonest that the name was used definitively was during the wars to united Mistral, when fleeing barbarian hordes rushed into Vigil's Gap and poured into the Boreale State. At about twenty-nine-hundred BCE, the first order of Boreale Knights was founded to confront these more significant threats from the east and south as the rest of Remnant thrived under the advent of Dust. Even the creatures of Grimm found no purchase in the forested valleys, glacial mountains, and humid marshlands; the thick woods ensnared and strangled them, the peaks crushed and froze them, and the swamps devoured and drowned them. Those Grimm that overwhelmed and overpowered the stocky and heavy armored Knights, their progeny, the lithe and dexterous Hunters, proved that no beast of Grimm would find solace in the lands of the Boreale; their great strength of numbers diminished as they were slaughtered by the implacable fighting prowess of Boreale warriors and their phasing trick-weapons.

It is this aspect, the unfettered and unyielding will of the people, and the valor and glory of the Knights, that placed the Boreale clan at the throne of power they reside. But still, so very little of those early times remain. Even the Knights' own exhaustive records have weathered to the trials of the ages or lost to unbreakable ciphers; the earliest date back to the Siege of Buff's Vigil in 1233 BCE, when the order was engaged against three legions of the Imperial Mistral Army in a war of conquest and imperial mandate. The sacrifices made by these lost generations were not in vain, as history testifies. Amidst enmity and shifting allies, the Boreale have come out battered and bloody, but firmly independent. Thanks in no small part to the voracity, the might, and the determination of the Coast dwelling people, backed by the tempered warriors of the seminal Boreale Knights and their descendants, the Boreale Hunters, the united clans of the Sovereign State of Boreale have born witness to eight wars, five recessions, two epidemics, three different empires, twelve would-be conquerors, and a depression; through the trials of the ages, the Boreale and all of our people have not only persevered, we have prospered."

Ty couldn't help the grin on his face. The wide-eyed looks of the young Hunter's classmates more than slightly boosted his ego, drinking from the glass of water on the speaking podium. "And that concludes my report, Professor."

"Excellently orated, Mister Boreale, one question before you take your seat."

Ty nodded. "Yes, Professor?"

"I'm wondering, what do your family's records have on the Faunus Revolution?"

The Faunus students in the class perked their heads up noticeably, of course, and their sharp eyes locked onto Ty. He stared back at them as his brows pulled together and the professor continued, "As far as anyone can tell none of the fighting spilling into the Boreale Coast, but a conflict of that size must have at least been noticed by your predecessors. Am I wrong?"

Ty didn't even blink. "No, professor." That was a lie. "There's hardly anything on the Revolution on the official record," also a lie. "I mean, I couldn't find any definitive proof that the Faunus didn't have an eye out for the Coast. I think the war ended before they made any move against the State." Again, a lie.

"Interesting," the professor took another drink from his coffee. "What do the records say on the matter?"

Ty pursed his lips and shrugged. "Very little, sir. A few reports of Faunus fighters skirting the distant borders, a skirmish or two with our guarded caravans, and several sightings of 'suspicious persons'," Ty bent a pair of his fingers with a deadpan tone and pursed, unimpressed expression, "but I didn't find anything that said we were ever _invaded_. The Knights _did_ find a few abandoned small camps years after the war. And based on what was left, I think the Faunus were keeping an eye on the State's alliances with the Kingdoms."

The professor tapped his pen against the rim of his coffee mug. "The tides of conflict can shift in strange ways. Very well, Mister Boreale. Please take your seat and, once again, excellently done. Mister Blues, I believe you're next on our docket."

"Coming in hot," Deac rose from his place at the lecturing desk and came around as Ty was walking back to his, exchanging a quick brofist with Ty as they passed each other. "Alright. Interesting act, my family wasn't originally from Boreale, we immigrated there. Originally the Rackleys were from a little harbor town in Mantle called Polido about five hundred years ago..."

Ty dropped into his seat with a loud sigh and wiped his hands over his face. He was exhausted. Physically from his morning routine and mentally from airing out ten and a quarter centuries of his family history to a room full of strangers.

 _Not to mention spending_ _two minutes straight up lying to your professor directly to his face._ The little voice in his thoughts chided merrily.

Ty sighed and squeezed his temples.

It wasn't like the young Hunter was proud to do it. Professor Oobleck just was not in the cozy little circle of instructors clued into the Boreale's incredibly delicate secrets. Ty had actually _started_ his research with the Faunus War and worked his way back. His reasoning is that, by and large, there was next to nothing in Beacon's archives about any Faunus offensives in the Boreale Coast.

The impression Ty got was that there wasn't enough hostility between the allied families and the handful of Faunus villages on the Coast to justify an attack. Ty wrote it off as his family lacking clout between the Kingdoms until he was almost done with the assignment.

It was a dumb accident he found anything in the first place. Ty was looking into the foundry of the Boreale Knights in a musty record of bound feeling parchment, deep in the recess of the Boreale library. Even then all the young Hunter had to go on was one cryptic sentence written on one page of the foot-thick book. _"The Faunus set foot on the Coast in search of retribution for the sins of Humanity's past; they were met by the fangs of theirs."_

Ty restrained a shiver running down his spine thinking on it. There was something unsettling about that brief entry, he still felt like the shadows were watching him. Whatever happened during the war was more that another skeleton in the family closet.

So the young Hunter settled himself into his seat and popped a throat lozenge. Deac's penchant for showmanship paid off when he had onlookers. It was going to be a good speech. The young Boreale Hunter gave a slight start when his Scroll buzzed in his pocket; Ty discreetly pulled it out and flipped it open to find a text from Yang.

 _Hey stud ;)P_

Ty tapped out, _Hey pretty lady._

 _How's the report going?_

 _Just finished. Deac's giving his show aws. Sonny's after and V plays us out._

 _(ᐛ)_ _Mr Saxophone must love the audience._

Ty smirked and fired back with, _If he could, there'd be confetti and fireworks._

 _lol u kno eet (^_ _Д^)_

Ty sat back in his seat contentedly. _What're you up to?_

 _Study hall. (-_-) i so vewy vewy bowed._

 _How'd Sauche's test go?_

Yang replied immediately. _It was a slog._

Ty smirked. _Bad?_

 _Bad._

 _Like how bad?_

 _Like watching a three-legged hound in a dog race._

Even having braced himself Ty only just caught the groan coming up his throat. _Ouch._ _I'm sorry._

 _I kno (: You're next up right?_

 _Yep._

 _Godspeed, stud_

 _Thanks, Yang._

Ty smiled and looked back up to check on Deac's presentation. "…changed when Hurricane Harper hit Mantle in 1859 and a half the north of Polido disappeared, two hundred of miles of the harbor just gone. When the storm finally stopped the Neptunia was the only ship that was seaworthy. So the Hunter's paid my great grandfather to ferry them to Boreale and back. Through Grimm waters strewn with the husks of ships and bodies of fellow sailors…"

Ty clocked out of the story to text Yang again. _I got one to get your thoughts going._

 _Shoot._

 _What do you consider your greatest weakness?_

Yang's reply came before the screen had a chance to blackout.

 _Ice cream._

Ty raised a brow at the two words floating on the screen. _Really?_

 _Ah huh (̮) I'm powerless against cold sugary goodness_

 _I'll have to keep that in mind._

 _Cheater ;P_

 _What's your favorite flavor?_

 _Cake batter hbu?_

 _Sweet cream's my go to back home._ Ty rubbed the underside of his nose. _That or red velvet._

 _They have RED VELVET ICE CREAM in Boreale!?_

 _My family makes it._

 _DUDE._

Ty snorted. _Oh yeah. It's awesome._

 _CAN HAS?!_

 _You want into my parlor I want dinner first Xiao Long_

 _t(:P)t_

Ty laughed at the pit of his throat and shifted in his seat, scratching at the collar of his uniform again. He needed to get in a meeting with Professor Heath or maybe even Goodwitch about his irritation with the fabric. It was leagues cooler in Oobleck's room versus Ports and Ty was still uncomfortable in his own skin. Ty was starting to think maybe it was allergies and he should head to the infirmary at some point. He made a mental note of it when Scroll buzzed again, surprise surprise, with another text from Yang.

 _hey what are you up to this weekend?_

The young Hunter glanced his eyes up in thought. _Nothing much._

 _Cool. Wanna go to the city with me?_

Ty popped an eyebrow. _As a date?_

 _As a date!_

 _Absolutely_

 _Yeeee! It'll be gr8! I'll show you EVERYTHING Vale has to offer!_

 _Premium exposure with off-premium pricing._ Ty grinned.

 _Exactly!_

 _Plus I can wear you as my arm candy around the city._

 _Tease (; I was thinking if the weather's nice you wanna hit the beach?_

 _So you can ogle me in my swimwear?_

 _Or you me C;_

 _oic how it is._ Ty chuckled under his breath, typing out, _Maybe we can get ice scream._

 _Yeah babyy~_

 _And the thought of you in a bikini IS very enticing._

 _U dn't evn kno~ G;_

 _Now who's a tease?_

Ty looked back up to check on Deac's progress, catching "…my family became the stewards of Cagney Isle around…" before his Scroll buzzed again.

 _So Weiss and Blake are trying to get Rubes up to snuff on the Fulson Principle_

 _Ty narrowed his eyes. Isn't that how Aura replenishes over time?_

 _Yep ̮ results are as expected_

Ty smiled pitifully _. That bad?_

 _In chronological order: ~(~)_ _( ﾟヮﾟ)_ _(•l•) then (ಠ~ಠ) ō_õ_ _ﾟ_ _\- ﾟ)_ _and now they're (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡 (༎ຶД༎ຶ) (ლ)_

 _Poor Ruby._

 _Poor Wiess—she was really into the lesson. I learned more in ten minutes than I did four years at Signal._

Ty shook his head. _Great work with the emojis btw. How many keyboards do you have set?_

 _17 betch_

Oobleck stood from his stool suddenly and clapped his hands together. "Alright Mister Blues, I'm afraid that's all the time we have for today. Everyone, we'll continue our reports tomorrow! Otherwise, excellent work from our presenters today!"

The bell tolled a moment after and Ty glanced at his watch. Four and a half minutes since he wrapped up his speech about the Boreale. By Ty's best guess Deac was still had a third of his report to give, the saxophone man would have to finish up tomorrow. Ty grinned, lucky him.

Ty stood up and swung his backpack over his shoulder and was coming down the lecture room's stairs when a pulse bounced off Ty's ears. A dull and deep noise like he had swallowed in the middle of a long yawn. The sensation made Ty jerk up straight and his mouth went dry, his eyes popping open in surprise, and the hairs across his body stood up.

"Shit," Ty tapped out of the messenger and checked the date. "That time already?"

Veera's figure wiped in front of the young Hunter. "You good, Ty? You look like somebody spooked ya."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Ty sniffed and stood up. "I forgot to ready my gear for EES today and I just realized it."

"Well if you didn't spend so much time this morning neckin' with Yang that wouldn't happen," Deac shot back.

Ty scoffed. "There was hardly any necking at all and you know it."

The music maestro chuckled under his breath and flipped back to the messenger to give Yang the heads up.

 _Hey I gotta head to the lockers to get my gear ready for EES. See you there?_

 _Mos def._

Ty joined up with his teammates and stormed out the door with his crowded classmates. But Ty broke left and down the hall instead of following Team BRSS to their destination. Towards the Beacon Academy locker rooms and then onto the Chapel, for a significant and very uncomfortable ceremony.

 **...**

There were dozens of religions on Remnant. Monotheistic and polytheistic, each with their own stories of creation, laws for the people of Remnant to abide by, stories of proud kings and prophets, messiahs and premonitions of the end of the world. Beacon's Chapel was non-denominational by default and all were welcomed to the sermons delivered on whatever day or time the Sabbath fell upon. There were even small shrines dedicated to the individual religious that the faithful or lost could seek out. Ty could count on each hand the number of people at Beacon that came to the secluded and curtained over room he was visiting. Not many people believed the legends of the quartet Ty and the other Hunter teams venerated, let alone worshipped them.

Ty followed the narrow strip of the hallway that led to the isolated shrine. It was a quiet space, a gently lit room, smaller than the other ones by design but infinitely more lavish with decoration. A few small windows backed the idols of the four gods, they're violet glass backlit by some ethereal light that moved through it instead of shining behind it, a small raised space on the floor reserved for offerings and tithes. The dark marble walls were divided by columns between the simplistic idols. The surfaces hand carved with obsessively and intricately detailed reliefs telling the stories of these gods. Who they were and where they came from, their great powers, the long war they waged against an abomination of malice and spite on ancient Remnant, the kingdoms they built after their victory, and the line of their descendants reaching through the ages.

Ty buzzed his lips at the sight of the simple, andtedeluvian carvings. The weight of the actual proof of these ancient god-kings slung over his own back kept the young Hunter from calling the whole mess ridiculous. But only just.

"I mean, c'mon. Cosmic warriors born in the Void?" Ty shook his head. "It sounds like a Saturday morning cartoon."

The shrine's restful quiet offered nothing for the young Hunter. He sighed and pulled the long case from his shoulders.

"Right. Fine," he popped the side latches that held the case shut along and lifted the sword from its confines. "Let's get this over with."

The the whole the sword was nearly as long as long as Ty was tall; a white-gray weapon had a design like a claymore with a thick quillon that slopped towards the tip of the blade. A few strips of handwritten cloth charms wrapped around the sword from the cross guard to the end of the ornately carved fuller and the ends dangled helplessly at several points. It was heavy, but not quite the right weight for its size. A mixed blessing, Ty could wield the sword in one hand and still do a lot of damage if he needed. The ensuing caveat being he'd need to pull his own weight back to keep from toppling over.

"But then, you're not supposed to be wielded like that, are you?" Ty looked at the sword with his hands planted on his hips and one eyebrow raised. "I thought as much."

He reached into his shirt and pulled his rosary from around his neck. Ty had crafted the necklace at the final stage of his Apprenticeship a year ago, in Boreale. He was straightforward with its fashion, stone and wood beads threaded at intervals, divided by polished steel bands, strung on a dyed horse-hide string. The rosary was tied off at either end by hooked metal facets that connected to a short bit of ion chain and terminated at an ornate silver idol that his father had given him. An icon designed very much like the crossguard of the sword he was standing over.

The young Hunter wrapped the rosary between his fingers and around his palm and dropped to a knee with his hand held it at arm's length over the sword. Ty closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, clearing his thoughts until the image of the rosary in his hand appeared in his mind. Ty focused on the idol, soaking in its detail. How its shape was made of thin iron bars and outlined the antediluvian pendant's miniature baroque inlays. The rays of light crowning small stars, tiny eyes formed by blooming roses linking four moonstone jewels with the blue crystal in the center on a column of lumenfluer effigies.

Ty reached out with his mind and clasped his hand around the icon and brought it to his chest. Ty opened his eyes and raised his arm, wreathed in his Aura, as the idol radiated with his very spirit. Ty spoke with words empowered by divine authority.

"For the Pact of the First Light and the Son's From Dark," Ty began. "I call upon the power awoken by ancient creed and current oath. Born of the New Blood and bade to carry the bane of light upon all things of darkness, hear me!" The air settled and the icon shown brighter, burning hot against his fist. "Grant me that this blade, withdrawn from its master, elucidated by Moonlight and seeped in strength, be bonded to me. Let it be that this sovereignless sword of hyborean age inherits a new knight, undaunted by fear and unshackled by death, to carry forth the will and way of the Four Sons. By the light of my soul, this is my call."

Ty dropped his fist straight down and touched the radiant rosary to the jewel of the sword on the altar. A vibrant green light surged from the crystal, engulfing the young Hunter and the shrine around him. The wash of cosmic radiance lasted a few moments and dissipated, leaving a single thin beam in the center of the shimmering crystal that fired skyward through Ty's fist. The icon had returned to its dormant, dull iron state. Ty's vision had cleared and his arm pulled back and set on his knee. Ty placed his head to rest on his wrist and out an exhausted breath, focusing on keeping his breathing even while he waited out the buzzing in his ears and the vibrations rattling his teeth.

It was an annoying aftereffect, but Ty would make it through the disorienting, fishbowl sensation while his Aura settled. The young Hunter reminded himself that this wasn't the worst bout of fatigue he had ever gotten from an oplomancy ritual. The first time Ty had paired his Aura with a weapon had left him so drained Ty was bedridden for a month, unable to eat and barely sleeping; a little disorientation was a cake walk. He'd make it through it okay.

Ty stood up carefully and unwrapped the rosary from his grip before returning it to his neck and letting out a long breath.

Well as fun as all this had been Ty had more pressing things to concern himself with. Namely, Roseline Sauche's unit exam and heading off Yang in EES for a no holds barred curb of his losing streak.

 _And a lot of making out thereafter,_ Ty smiled smugly as he packed the sword back into its case.

Was it wrong that Ty was itching for that chance to get in the ring with Yang? Probably, and that thought dulled his dumb grin into a smirk. They did just have their first date last night. Maybe he wouldn't be as devastating as he had planned to be, but he and Yang could have a fun bout of bucking their heads together before they pulled something. Or either of them passed out from plain exhaustion. Even with his Semblance going there was only so much exertion Ty's body could take before giving out.

Ty swung the sword case over his shoulder and left the shrine, and a thought occurred to him. What was Yang's Semblance anyway?

"I mean…" His head tilted as he thought. "It's probably something to do with her fists. Let's be real here."

It was a decent starting point. Ty kept on it as he walked. Maybe Yang's Semblance affected her fighting ability, like a force multiplier, doling out higher damage per hit for shorts bursts. It would definitely fit Yang's blunt force aggression in the ring. Ty rubbed a bit of his lower lip between his teeth, maybe she was like his mother and her Aura had a physical presence with mass and dimensions Yang could use as a weapon or armor. Yang always barreled into confrontations, if her Semblance worked like armor it made Ty wonder if all the holes in her guard weren't intentional. A good opponent could spot them out and rush in for the kill, only getting a hefty smack away by Yang's Semblance and left wide open for a counterattack. A strategy like that more than explained her reckless habit of charging into the fray

Ty stopped as his train of thought reached a final destination. What if Yang's Semblance was like his Aura Surge?

"Ehh...That'd be something," he rubbed his chin with the webbing of his thumb and forefinger a moment before checking his watch. He had eight minutes before Ballistic Theory. _Plenty of time._

"It's gonna be an interesting day of class, that's for sure."


	8. Chapter 8: So Yang and Ty Have A Talk

_A/N: Hey there, faithful, happy new year and NEW NEW CHAPTER!_

 _I_ _am_ _ so sorry this came out so much later than usual. My dumb ass deleted the original draft, and I had to start over more or less from scratch. That clusterfuck is_ _compounded by the renewed heartbreak I've gotten going through Vol 1–3 for a fifth time, researching Pyrrha's interactions again so I could refine my spin on her character._ _I pride myself on skirting the canon in as many ways as I can while adhering to its spirit._

 _I'll address those changes as the story progresses, however._ _Do share your thoughts in the reviews! I_ ** _feed_** _on input!_

 _—Saulderon_

* * *

 **Chapter 8** **So Yang and Ty Have A Talk**

Ty could cut the silence in the Ballistic Theory class with the tip of his finger. The young Hunter smirked at the thought but didn't let the hyperbolic imagery distract him. Ty needed to keep his train of thought on his test. What he had left of it, at least.

One likable thing about Sauche's exams was that they were short and they didn't pussyfoot around, unlike the doorstopper nightmares that Ty had pictured. They were usually two pages with twenty short answer "What if..." type questions that tested what the class covered in the unit. The environmental term incorporated all of the insidious little factors like windage, humidity, and foliage in the wide-open world. Most of it was train etiquette level of simple math, but a lot of formulas.

 _It's still an ungodly slog._ Ty irritatedly grumbled as he worked his way through the last page. Maybe he was overreacting. Ty's gears were turning a little faster, but the test wasn't pulling his dick around. It took his time and commitment seriously. Ty worked through his answers carefully in return, and he finished in twenty minutes. With a relieved sigh, Ty stood up from the desk and trodded down the flight of stairs dividing the rows of desks to the lecture floor, where Professor Sauche graded other assignments behind her bureau. Ty dropped his exam in the wireframe basket with the others.

"Well done, Master Boreale," the toffee haired professor said without looking up from her work. "You may count yourself excused. I understand you have a bit of a walk ahead of you, hmm?"

Ty's triumphant grin slackened as he rubbed his hand over his face with a groan. "Ugh, yeah. Don't remind me."

 **...**

The Ballistics Theory classrooms were on the far side of campus, almost backed in with Beacon's swath of the Emerald Forest. Ty found it appropriate, considering the amount of time and lessons spent with a rifle in their hands and their eyes down a scope. It _also_ meant that Ty had to walk from one end of the school to the other because the EES building was next to Beacon's mainstay arena. It was okay; it gave Ty the chance to stretch his limbs.

Ty walked across campus, and each step his mind wandered farther. Yang began to form in his head as he passed through the main hall. It was a pleasant thought. The image of her honey-gold hair and bright white smile gave Ty a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest. With Yang on his mind, he pulled out his Scroll to shoot her a text.

If Ty remembered right, Teams RWBY and JNPR we're having their turn at orations with Doctor Oobleck. Weiss' report would be an interesting sight. The icy heiress's rebellion of the sinuses notwithstanding, she was always cordial with relaying the brief but admittedly inspiring story of her family's business. If she were in better spirits, Ty wondered if Weiss would have had a full production planned.

Jaune's turn would be just as amusing. Ty smiled at his mental image of Jaune giving his report. The blonde knight's nervous personality didn't bode well for public speaking. Ty felt for his poor classmate. Jaune was a great guy, but he had enough insecurities to make a self-help guru sweat. If Jaune's speech weren't going to be awkward enough, Ren and Nora's would likely be even more uncomfortable. If Ty recalled, both of them were orphaned when they were kids and practically raised each other. He pictured the audience sitting in unpleasant silence as they listened to their tragic backstory.

Ty imagined Yang's and Ruby's reports would probably sound a lot alike, for obvious reasons. They _were_ sisters. Ty wouldn't be surprised if they split the two between each other, Yang covering their dad and while Ruby tackled their mom.

What were their names? Ty's walking came to a stop. "Ah…huh."

He knew the names of Yang's parents, didn't he? Ty leaned against the wall and wracked his brain for a long minute. Was it Mr. and Mrs. Xiao Long? Mr. Xiao Long and Ms. Rose? Was it the other way around? Are Yang's parents even married or are they merely common-law partners?

 _Why am I getting_ _so hung up on this?_ Ty shook his head to clear his thoughts. _I can just ask her later. I bet Yang would love to talk about her parents since I'm her boyfriend and all._

Ty's thoughts suddenly focused on that one word. Boyfriend.

 _I_ am _her boyfriend, right?_

He let out a ragged sigh and dragged his hand over his face. _Is it too early to think that? We've only_ _had the_ one _date, this morning notwithstanding. T_ _here_ was _that heady kiss of ours, but t_ _hat could have been the heat of the moment._ _Is it right to say we're committed?_

The young Hunter slid his Scroll closed and tucked it into his back pocket, the message he mindlessly started left unsent. He would talk to her about it later. _Arguing with myself in my head isn't going to get me anywhere._

 **...**

The door to the student locker rooms rushed open as Ty approached. He walked in to find a smattering of other student Huntsmen in the co-ed room, chatting and getting changed for class. His brow furrowed and Ty checked the time to see he was ahead of the next session. By good ten minutes, if his watch was right.

Sauche's exam must have taken more out of him than he realized.

Ty exhaled and brushed it off. _At least I'm not the first to show up._

Ty gave his classmates a quick wave hello and made way to his locker, pulling off his blazer and going to work on his tie.

He was mid-way through the buttons on his shirt when he keyed in his code, and the locker rattled open. Ty shrugged out of his shirt and braced his arm on the frame to take off his shoes when his eyes caught on the dark scar traveling under his forearm. A souvenir courtesy of the horned monstrosity he and the rest of his team fought a month ago, during Initiation, in the dark vaulted labyrinthine arena deep below the Academy's foundry. It had healed well; it was barely more than a ghostly line winding across his forearm in a swooping arc. But Ty knew he would have the mark for the rest of his life.

Ty followed the scars on his arm up to his shoulders and across his chest. The further he went the more his lips drew into a repulsive scowl. How many injuries did he have now? Ty wracked his memory but couldn't come up with a definite number. Ballpark, there couldn't be any lower than forty. Probably two dozen had collected on just his chest. He didn't want to think about the ones on his back. Ty repressed a grimace when he rubbed his hand over the most recent additions, both just inches apart from the other in the middle of his torso. Lousy footwork coupled with a missed parry that sent his sister Layla's spear into his sternum, and a poorly timed roll knocked him off his rhythm, and his brother Duncan put a sword through his gut. A shiver crept along his shoulders at the foreign feeling of the scar tissue under his fingers.

He spared glanced at the control panel and pressed a prompt on the screen. A privacy guard popped up from the slats in the floor, and a little six-foot space closed off for him to change away from straying eyes. Maybe it was a bit much, Ty considered. He was healthy and lean and good looking. But in the open air of the empty locker room, Ty just couldn't shrug the feeling he was…exposed.

The Huntsmen at Beacon were proud of the scars they got in combat school or on early battles against the Grimm. Small little marks on the otherwise perfect skin. They were impressive on young warriors, and the Huntsmen and Huntresses around him had stories of close calls and stupid moves that they laughed off. But Ty had the scars of a seasoned veteran, not a student.

Ty wasn't ashamed of his scars; he just preferred to keep them to himself. Tucked away under a quality layer of durable fabric and gel-padded plating; his armor had both in spades.

Ty frowned. That wasn't entirely accurate. The suit in his locker was _utility_ armor. Assembly made for repeated mass use; it didn't _fit_ quite the way mail should. Ty would receive a tailored suit of Boreale Plate after graduating from Beacon and sworn as a knight, _that_ would be _his_ armor. What he was pulling on at the moment was just high-end training gear. It was also really, _really_ high-end training gear, composed of a sparring jacket and pants, with chain meshing on the arms and legs, steel-toed boots, and studded knuckle gauntlets on fluted vambraces, and coupled to a set of sculpted armor plates. All of it intermittently dyed a medium blue that matched Ty's hair. It was a hassle to get the whole thing on at once, but Ty would admit he did look damn good in the armor.

But he didn't need the screen up while he clipped the plates into place. Holding one of the pauldrons in his teeth, the young Hunter palmed the command pad to the guard, and the opaque barriers dropped. Back in the wide open of the locker room Ty discovered most of the class had now filled in, along with the usual din of conversation that came with it.

 _Well, that didn't take long._

Ty caught a bouncing scarlet ponytail in his periphery, undoubtedly headed his way, and snapped onto it. Pyrrha smiled at him pleasantly when her bright green eyes met his dulcet grays.

"Hey, Sis."

"Good morning, Tyrus," Pyrrha greeted, opening her locker. Her jovial tone made Ty smile. "Your day going well?"

Ty shrugged. "As good as it gets. Is Yang around?"

"She was," Pyrrha stopped short and looked behind her. "She might have stayed back with Doctor Oobleck. I lost her on the way over here."

"Mmm," Ty frowned. "What about you, Sis? Your morning go alright?"

"I'd say so, yes," The flaming Amazon said while she pulled on her gloves and slid on her gauntlets and vambraces. "Jaune won his first sparring match this morning."

"Hey! Good for him!"

"Indeed. Jaune's very proud of himself."

"He should be," Ty grinned just as he finished with his vambraces and rerebraces.

"I don't understand him, Ty, Jaune has plenty of raw ability. I feel he just needs..." Pyrrha's smile dimmed a little as she thought. "Refinement."

"'Tutoring' is the word you're looking for, Sis."

The fiery amazon chuckled and tested her fingers in her glove. Ty caught something that sounded like an egg timer going off, and Pyrrha tilted her head and looked him over inquisitively. "Correct me, Ty, but I think this is the first time I've seen you in armor since the term began."

Ty snorted. "It's the first time I've worn it, Pyr," he chuckled as he hooked in the segments of his breastplate and backplate. "Didn't have a reason to before."

Pyrrha lifted a brow. "But now you do?"

"A couple. Three. A loose three," Ty said with a pointed look. "Mostly I'm upping my stats to handle the power curve when Goodwitch drops that Aura limiters and everyone starts sparring with their Semblances."

Pyrrha deadpanned, "And to impress Yang in your striking battle regalia."

Ty tossed his head back and laughed. "Nothing gets by you, Sis."

"Years of practice, Tyrus," she teased, and they shared a laugh. "It looks good on you."

"Thanks."

Pyrrha beamed joyfully and wrapped her corseted cuirass around her middle. "What was the third one?"

"It has to do with who I'm bringing out to the field," Ty reached over and worked his fingers along the control console.

The locker's panels swapped places in a whirl of machinery, presenting a knightly sword and a large heater shield. The sword was a simple but elegant make, the hilt a charming combination of brass crossguard that ended in curled bulbs and pommel with leather wrapping along the grip, with a long, broad blade with a short fuller that gently tapered to a rounded tip. Embossed on the shield were four scenes of ancient battles carefully blended to form one cohesive image, save for the center, where the seal of the Boreale Knights emblazoned on a raised placard.

Pyrrha's lips parted, and her eyes popped. "Silferließe."

Ty smiled at his sister's reaction. "Yang excels at close quarters assault. With her strength and speed, she doesn't so much fight her opponents as she drowns them in waves of overwhelming force," Ty sighed, and pulled his sword's scabbard from the locker and belted it around his waist. "But she's reckless, and her biggest asset in a fight is her anger. Yang attacks like every battle is an all-out brawl, and I can exploit it quickly with a defensive and surgical strategy."

"Hence, Silferließe."

Ty grinned and nodded. Pyrrha tilted her head, considering. "I will believe that. More, I'm surprised you haven't fought Yang with Silf already."

"So am I, honestly. I didn't think it would take me six freaking weeks to pin Yang's ability."

"Implying that you didn't enjoy every minute of it, Ty," Pyrrha said with a knowing look.

"More than a little," Ty passed her a wink.

Ty propped one booted foot on the bench behind him, and leaned down to fit the poleyn and strap the cuisse to his knee and thigh, repeating the process with the other leg. He huffed with effort. It was still a chore to bend over in his full armor, even with the flexibility the segments of plate offered, and Ty had to stop and sit upright every few seconds so he could get a good breath of air.

 _I should have started with these first._ Ty chided himself. Pyrrha giggled at his plight. Ty shot her an annoyed look.

"Can I help you with something?"

"Yes, actually," she smiled and whirled around and indicated the back lacing of the corset. "Could you assist me with tying me in?"

 _Low hanging fruit._ Ty snorted but chose not to say anything. "Since you asked so nicely."

Ty grabbed the laces in either hand and yanked the cords tight. "You really ought to upgrade your gear, Sis."

"It serves its purpose."

"Against the Grimm, yes," Ty rolled his eyes and started tying the laces down. "It's not always gonna be mindless monsters we're going to be fighting. You need something that you can take more than a few hits in."

Pyrrha looked over her shoulder at him. "Tyrus. Are you worried about me?"

"Of course I am, I want my best friend to keep herself safe," the blue-haired boy's voice seeped with concern. "We promised to look out for each other. And whether you're Invincible Girl or not, I intend to keep it."

Pyrrha's shoulders slumped, and her head drooped forward again. The conversation stopped dead in its tracks. Ty tried to brush it off, turning his focus back to tightening the laces of Pyrrha's corset. He wished she would at least _entertain_ the idea of upgrading her chest piece. A larger cuirass that encased her shoulders and more of her upper chest would put Ty's mind at ease. He did not like the idea of Pyrrha going down because some lucky shot dislocated her shoulders or put a blade or an arrow in her—

"—tell me, Ty?"

"Huh?" Ty snapped out of his thoughts. "What? I missed that."

Pyrrha huffed and turned to face Ty with a slightly stern expression and crossed arms. "Why didn't you tell me you had feelings for Yang?"

Ty winced like he had something had struck him.

 _Oh. Here we go._ Ty closed his eyes and let out a long breath. When he opened them, he said, "I wanted to, Pyrrha. I did. I was just," Ty ran his hand through his hair and laughed. "I was scared to."

"Oh…Ty," Pyrrha's expression softened, her brows shifting to a sympathetic slant. "That wasn't all, was it?"

"No, not at first," Ty ground his palm into his forehead. "At first, I wasn't sure what it was that I felt for Yang. I mean, I've always liked Yang—she's a great person and an even better friend—but there was more to it than that," Ty gave another sigh and curled his fist in his hair. "When you told me about your feelings for Jaune, you seemed so _certain_ of them and I…I couldn't put what I felt to sense."

"You hadn't realized you'd taken your heart off your sleeve and put it in her hands," Pyrrha surmised with a small smile. "You're quite taken by Yang."

Ty buzzed his lips. "You don't know the half of it, Sis."

Pyrrha pressed her lip into a comforting smile and closed the space between them and wrapped Ty in a warm, loving hug. "You don't need to _know_ what you feel to tell me something, Ty," she said, and let Ty out of the hug. "It helps just to get things off your chest. It's why I told you about Jaune."

"I..." Ty's words failed on him, so he just smiled. "Thanks, Pyrrha."

"Mhmm," the flaming Amazon smiled. "She's a lucky girl."

"She's got a luckier guy."

"Are you two committed yet or do you know?"

"I don't know, honestly," Ty sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "We've only had one _actual_ date, and it was a spur of the moment kind of thing."

"But you _are_ serious about being with Yang, correct?"

"Absolutely," Ty said, affirmation loaded in his words.

"Then talk to her about it," Pyrrha offered with a knowing smile. "I saw how she looked at you at breakfast. I think she is just as settled on you as you are on her."

Ty blinked, and his features pinched together. "You think?"

A giant yellow blur cannonballed out of the crowd of students and collided with Ty in a spinning cavalcade that circled the young Hunter's torso several times. Yang emerged out of the whirling cacophony in her regular fighting attire. Her arms wrapped securely around Ty's chest; her chin rested on his pauldron.

"Hey there, stud," Yang said, a giddy smile spreading across her lips.

Ty hugged her back. "Hello, gorgeous."

Yang glanced over to Pyrrha and offered a friendly wink. "Hiya, Pyrrha. I didn't clip you on the way in did I?"

"Good afternoon, Yang," Pyrrha replied with a quiet giggle. "And no, I'm quite fine. Thank you."

Yang let him free and stepped around Ty a few times, looking him over before she let out an impressed whistle. "You look good and dashing. This for the Semblance matches today?"

Ty nodded. "Until I get a feel for everyone's power output, yeah."

"How did you put it, Ty?" Pyrrha gave him a wry smirk, "You wanted to 'up your stats to handle the power curve.'"

Yang snerked and placed a hand on her hip. "And you say _I_ play too many video games."

"You do," Ty and Pyrrha countered in unison, and the three of them shared a laugh. Yang pulled her Scroll out and busied herself in her apps while she waited for her classmates. Pyrrha pulled Miló and Akoúo̱ from her locker and closed it with a few quick works of the command terminal.

"All set?"

"I believe so," Pyrrha said and cleared her throat. "I need to excuse myself. I have something to speak with Professor Goodwitch about before matches start."

"Alright, Sis," Ty said. "See you out there."

"Later," Yang said with a quick wave.

Pyrrha caught Ty's eye and glanced her eyes over Ty's shoulder and pointed at Yang with her chin. _Talk to her._

Ty frowned and spared a glance over his shoulder. Pyrrha was right, he realized. Ty had tried to curb their relationship until the young Hunter felt ready for the blowback, and look where it got him. He was overthinking this, letting uncertainty get the better of his judgment. He _wasn't_ sure, but that had not stopped him for the six years Ty was an Apprentice. Why should it stop him now?

Ty rolled his jaw and nodded. Pyrrha flashed him a supportive smile and gave thumbs up before she disappeared into the crowd of students. Ty took a long breath and let it out in a ragged sigh.

"Hey, Yang?" Ty's fingers hovered over the privacy guard prompt.

Yang lifter her head up from her Scroll. "Yeah?"

"Can we talk...privately for a minute?"

Yang's expression shifted to curious concern and shut her Scroll. "Sure."

Ty hit the command, and the guard popped up again. Yang stepped closer to Ty as the walls jumped up, tucking her Scroll back into her pocket.

"So, what's up?"

"I wanted to ask something about us," Ty said, closing his locker. Yang blinked and raised a brow.

"Okay, go ahead."

Ty exhaled to find his center. "Is it too early to think of myself as your boyfriend?"

Yang scoffed and her face pinched into a confused scowl. "What constitutes 'too early'?"

"Well," Ty crossed his arms. "We've only been on one date, for one. For two, we didn't have the best launching off point."

Yang gave an embarrassed laugh and offered several conceited nods. "Yeah. You're right there."

"I just…" Ty rubbed the back of his neck. "I just don't want to come on too strong and rush into something ahead of you."

Yang's lilac eyes flickered with amusement. "You didn't seem too worried about that when we were tongue on tongue yesterday."

Ty pressed his lips into a tight frown. Had she completely missed his point?

"Sorry, that was…not what I meant to say. I guess I'm…" Yang sighed and set her hands on her hips. "Honestly, I'm a little surprised. Okay, I'm _a lot_ surprised. I thought you wanted something like a kiss for luck before the fight. But you're serious about this, aren't you?"

"Well, yes," Ty replied. "You're the first girl I'm serious about seeing. I don't want to lose you just when I've got you."

Yang stared at him with a blank expression. A small smile spread on Yang's lips after a moment, and Ty would swear before God her face got a little red. Yang stepped in to embrace him, draping her arms across Ty's shoulders.

"You know, Blake says that you wear your heart on your sleeve."

Ty snorted a laugh. "I'm beginning to sense that."

"I don't think so, though," Yang's grin grew. "I think it's your whole damn shirt."

She pulled at Ty's neck and slanted her lips against his before he could respond. It was just a peck, but it was a long, heady one, and Ty let his eyelids fall for the brief moment. Yang began to pull away, but Ty trailed after her. Enticing as it was, she broke away and gave a soft chuckle. Ty's eyes fluttered open as Yang pushed her brow against his, a bright smile curling up her cheeks.

"If you wanna say I'm your girl, I won't object," she said, her voice just above a whisper. "Same goes for me to you. Deal?"

"Um…ah," Ty's mouth worked, but his words came out in an unintelligible mess. He gave up and resorted to several jerky nods.

"Good," she said, and gave his nose a playful bop and stepped away to drop the privacy guard. Yang turned and started towards the tunnel to the EES arena floor.

"Good luck out there, boyfriend," she said as she turned around, throwing a wave over her shoulder. "I'll be rooting for you."

Ty followed Yang as her curtain of honey gold hair bounced away, entirely at a loss. Some part of his cognition final kicked back in when Yang turned a corner and vanished from his view. Ty cleared his head with a shake and stood upright.

"Huh. Wow," the blue-haired boy chuckled. "What a woman."

* * *

 _A/N: Okay. So maybe I cheated a bit with Silferließe's name—here pronounced sil-fur-lee-ace, no syllable stresses—it translates to "Silver released" in real life, but I like the sound of it better than the actual German translation. Rule of Cool wins out in the end._

 _Next chapter is the fight between Ty and Yang. Gonna be fun to write._

 _Now for some development news. I've come to something of a sense of peace for myself regarding Pyrrha and gotten a little out of my rut. Until the end of RWBY, nothing has set in stone. And stone breaks even if that were the case. I have faith that Pyrrha will return, entirely, as well as Arkos. Until then I'll leave you with some old wisdom: Never hesitate to tell someone you care about them. Give thanks. Weep freely. Love unconditionally. Dum spiro spero. While I breathe, I hope._

 _I will close out by saying THANK YOU to everyone that's read and reviewed so far, your support keeps me going!_

 _See you next chapter._

 _—Saulderon_


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